Reality Breach
by thekyuubivixen
Summary: Everyone wants to have their dreams come true, right? Well, in Shadow's case, them becoming real may cause his reality to morph into a living nightmare. His life was already hard enough with one Sonic, but now that another annoying speedster and a crafty chameleon had been added to the mix, slipping into another coma sounded less like a bad idea to him.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co. If I did…well, some characters may or may not be sent to their graves. (insert evil laughter here)**

 **A/N: Hey guys! Welcome back to this ongoing rollercoaster! Put your seatbelts back on because trust me, this ride isn't over yet! This story is going to pick up from where it left off…quite literally XD So if you're new here, I** _ **highly**_ **suggest reading the prequel Alternate Reality first so you won't be confused for 99.999% of the fic.**

 **Warnings: Throughout the story, there's gonna be cursing from a certain hedgehog and some good ole violence, but most of y'all already know that ;)**

 **Enough of my rambling, go on and enjoy!**

 **Chapter 1- Prologue**

"S-Seriously?" A stuttering voice asked, choking on mirth-filled chuckles, "You called him Faker, and he called you a-" Boisterous laughter echoed around the small room, drowning out the constant high-pitched beeping, "And then that fight! You would've lost if it wasn't for Silver! Oh man I wish I was-"

"Leave, hedgehog."

"Wha-? Aw come on! You gotta tell me the rest!"

"I'm not obligated to do anything."

"But why? I'm sure Rouge laughed when you told her!"

"One, she didn't interrupt me, and two, I'm more tolerant of her than you."

Emerald eyes rolled, "Yeah sure," a smug smirk grew on a tanned muzzle, "You just don't want to share about the other times you've lost to me."

Blazing red irises narrowed as a low growl emitted beneath a white furred chest, " _Goodbye_ , Faker."

Sonic's grinning face greatly contrasted Shadow's scowling expression. The blue speedster shrugged, "It's fine if you wanna keep it to yourself," he hopped off of a cream-colored chair and stretched his back, hearing a couple pops. Sonic then turned his attention to the window showing a busy Station Square, cradling his chin with his hand and raising a brow, "I'm sure Rouge would be more than happy to fill me in with the rest."

" _Don't_ bother her."

The azure hero returned his gaze to his agitated rival, trying to ignore the white bandages around the darker one's head. Sonic remembered when the doctors first wrapped them around Shadow, the workers at the hospital not being able to throw the blue hero and Rouge out of the surgery room. He also remembered being notified that the other's chances weren't good. Sonic never wanted to feel that amount of anxiety in his life again.

The speedster shook away those memories. No point in thinking about them now. Sonic waved off his rival, "I won't…right now, anyway," he snickered at the poisonous glare sent his way. Sonic took a few steps toward the hospital room door, the soles of his shoes tapping against the white tile floor. He grasped the handle and glanced back over his shoulder with a lopsided smile, "But I'll leave, since being in someone else's company seems to give you hives," Sonic gave a short wave as he slid the door open, "Rest up Shads! And pick up your shattered pride while you're at it."

Sonic heard the exasperated sigh even after he closed the door behind himself.

He let out a single chuckle as he scanned up and down the hallway he was in. No one was traversing the floor from what he could see, so, not giving up the opportunity, Sonic sped to where the stairs were, almost running straight into an empty gurney when he turned the corner. His speed didn't decrease when he found his exit and practically flew down the three flights.

However, Sonic then aired on the side of caution when he got down to the first floor. It was the busiest one, and he didn't want to be responsible for any tragic accidents. The sound of his footsteps quieted and slowed as he walked out into the open, silently observing the occupants of the hospital, both working and not.

Sonic took a half-step back when a team of nurses wheeled a critical looking guy past him. It seemed like a car crash victim, with scrapes, cuts, and bruises everywhere. When they passed, the hedgehog grabbed the attention of a worried woman trailing after them.

"Hey," he calmly called to her. She paused and Sonic saw tears in her eyes. The hedgehog put a hand on her arm, giving her a soft smile, "Don't worry. He's gonna make it, okay?" Those words felt familiar on his tongue, and he knew why. He had told Rouge this numerous times while she was a trembling mess the day of the incident. He was sure he was trying to reassure himself as well.

Sonic saw how his words affected her, draining most of the tension away. The woman gave a shaky smile back, "Th-Thank you," she managed to get out before following the hurt patient once more.

The blue speedster took in a deep breath and let it out, continuing his way toward the front door of the building. He passed by the reception area, and waved at the kids who saw him, momentarily brightening up their stay. Sonic loved that he had that effect on people. He caused smiles and laughter. When people noticed him, he saw hope and joy in their eyes. Being a hero was risky at times, but Sonic wouldn't have it any other way.

As soon as the hedgehog felt the sunlight on his face outside, the gentle breeze carried all of his concerns away. Shadow was fine. He was alright. He was _alive._ Now Sonic could run without thinking about anything or anyone. He could just go. And he did.

Sonic sped down the sidewalks of Station Square, carefulto not go so fast to interrupt the daily commute of pedestrians. He swerved between groups of people, more than ready to get to the city's limits and just let loose.

When he was clear of any buildings, cars, and citizens, the speedster went into overdrive, a sonic boom signifying his departure. Sonic just ran, not knowing where he was going or how long it was going to take to get there. The thought of Tails worrying where he was showed its head for a quick second, but Sonic immediately disregarded it. The kit was busy fixing up the Tornado, so he wouldn't think that Sonic was out for too long until tomorrow. An excited shout escaping his throat, the hero tore across the landscape, racing the wind. The constant drumming of his feet against the ground was somewhat soothing to him.

Sonic whooped when he sprinted down a hill, gaining speed and feeling the cool wind whipping across his face. Two blue ears then twitched when they heard a distant horn of a train. He held his hand over his eyes to shield them from the sun as he looked around, slowing his decent slightly as he searched. The hero grinned when he spotted the locomotive in the distance, dark smoke rising up out of it. Sonic changed his path and made a hard right, determined to catch up with the train.

It was a cargo train, he noticed as he got closer. It wasn't long before Sonic was running alongside of one of many large containers traveling the metal track. He glanced up at it and stiffed a laugh when he saw the graffiti on the side. It was the iconic symbol of his head, colored a solid blue.

"Usually breaking the law doesn't sit right with me," he muttered to himself with a snigger, "but I don't mind this time." Muscles tensing, Sonic grunted as he jumped high into the air before grasping the corner of the moving rectangular box. He easily pulled himself up and made himself comfortable on top of the slightly bumpy container. He sighed as he crossed his legs and leaned back on his hands, enjoying the view of the plains he was passing through.

Sonic sat for a handful of minutes, observant eyes taking in anything and everything. The fluffy clouds floating by, the swaying grasses down below, the various animals peacefully grazing, the flock of birds flying overhead, the white glowing ball in the sky…

Wait…what?

Sonic blinked before sitting up straighter, seeing that the white light was gone, but now falling figures replaced it. The hedgehog's reaction was instant when he realized that the figures were actually tumbling _bodies._ He recklessly jumped off the moving train, landing on his hands and feet to reduce the chance of injury. He then tore up the grass when he took off. His gaze was focused on nothing but his targets, which were hard to make out because of the sun behind the bodies.

He was running toward them, but what was he going to do? He couldn't catch but one of them if he remained on the ground. Sonic gritted his teeth as he pushed harder. They weren't falling for long. They weren't that high up…What was he thinking? Someone could break a leg if they _fell_ on it the wrong way! Who knows what would happen if they hit the ground from where they appeared in the sky!

Sonic bit his lip as he got closer. He couldn't let them hit the ground…not at the speed they were currently freefalling. A plan forming in his head, the hedgehog ran for a few more seconds before jumping high and wrapping each arm around each waist. His breath was then knocked out of him when something bumped against his chest. Still in the air, Sonic glanced down only for his lungs to fail him.

Against him was a dead Chao.

The hedgehog, caught severely off-guard, forgot what position he was in and promptly crash landed, flipping head-over-heels and getting a mouthful of dirt. Sonic, having let go of the bodies when he made contact with the unforgiving ground, quickly peeled his face from the dirt to regain his bearings. When he did, he whipped his head around, his brain and body and _soul_ freezing at what he saw.

His eyes weren't tricking him in the air, there was indeed a dead Chao. But now…But now Sonic could recognize it as _Cheese._ And the two the hero had held could now be identified as Vanilla and Cream…both unmoving like the Chao.

Heartrate raising and thumping hard against his chest, Sonic slowly crawled over to the youngest bunny, picking her up in his trembling peach arms. He didn't care that he was getting blood on him; all he cared about was that she was _cold._

It felt like Sonic's world was crashing down around him. He stared at her closed eyelids, mouth opening and closing in shock, "C-Cream?" he eventually managed to get out, waiting for the other to wake up and answer him. She couldn't be dead…she couldn't… "Cream?!" Sonic rose his voice a bit, ignoring the bullet wounds in the bunny's head that were still leaking, "Oh _Chaos_ ," the hero choked out, holding the child closer to him, "Who _did_ this to you…?"

Damp emeralds slowly focused on Vanilla and Cheese, seeing that they had died in the same horrid way. He stared at the mother longer, wondering why she had on a GUN suit, but that was quickly pushed to the back of his mind. He was trying to figure out who would _murder_ this trio of Mobians who never wished any harm on _anyone_. They were the most innocent people Sonic knew and…and they didn't _deserve_ this!

Sonic's first answer was Eggman, but he just couldn't fathom the doctor stooping so low to kill someone who would never even pose a threat. Sure, Cream had went on adventures with him and the gang occasionally, but she mostly stuck by Amy's side and hadn't done _anything_ to cause this fate. Or maybe…Eggman did it to get to him? To lure him in, knowing that he would show up to get payback? There was a lot of things Sonic didn't know, and he couldn't think straight right now. He needed another brain. Sonic needed Tails. He knew the cub would be as shaken up as he was, but…Tails could think things through better than he could.

Sonic swiftly dug into his quills and grabbed his communicator.

* * *

Tails hissed under his breath when he hit his head on the underside of the Tornado, reacting to a rather startling static sound coming from his left. The yellow kit rubbed the throbbing spot, smearing oil there in the process, before shifting to the side and standing up. Ocean blue eyes searched the junky – he wouldn't call it that, but others would – garage/laboratory before zeroing in on his communicator sitting on his workbench propped against the wall.

Berating himself for being scared like that knowing there was going to be a bruise on his head in a minute, Tails abandoned his touch-up job for a moment and jogged over to the bench, putting his wrench and screwdriver down on top of it.

"I wonder what Sonic wants…" the kit thought aloud as he picked the device up, "He doesn't usually contact me unless something's up," Tails suddenly had a sinking feeling in his stomach. Sonic was supposed to be visiting Shadow, right? Rouge had said that he was awake (the cub wanted to go, but the bat told him she didn't want too many people in the hospital room), so why was his big bro calling him? Did something happen to Shadow?

Anxious to know, he pressed the button on the side and held the communicator up to his mouth, "Sonic?"

" _T-Tails."_

The fox was right to be concerned. His brother was upset, _very_ upset. Tails swallowed thickly and responded, "Sonic? What's going on? Are you okay?" _Is Shadow alright?_

" _Y-Yeah…I'm fine. But…"_ There was a long pause and Tails did nothing but wait, biting the side of his cheek, _"It's Cream…"_

 _Cream?_ Tails wasn't expecting that. He was so shocked that all of his nervousness was momentarily forgotten. _Why is he calling about…wait a second._ Sonic's voice, it sounded like he was crying. And Sonic…Sonic never cried. Worry washed back over the vulpine and Tails had to keep himself from dropping the device in his quivering hand.

"W-What about Cream?"

" _She…She isn't…"_ He heard the other take a deep breath, _"I found her Tails, with Vanilla and Cheese. They all fell from the sky and-"_

"Fell from the sky?" Tails _really_ didn't like the sound of that. He leaned more on the workbench in front of him, "What…What do you mean?"

" _They appeared in the middle of a white light or somethin', I don't know, but they started to fall and I caught them before they hit the ground… Tails."_

The fox hated the way Sonic said his name. His breath began to quicken, "Yeah?"

"… _Lil bro, I'm sorry. They're…They're all…"_

Tails didn't want to hear anymore. He knew what was coming next. The kit sank to the floor, wrapping his namesakes around himself. He clutched the communicator in his hand so hard that his fingers hurt. Sapphire irises stared unblinkingly forward, wetness staining his cheeks. He heard Sonic say it, that they were dead, that someone shot them, but he didn't – _couldn't_ respond. Cream was…She was his close friend. Maybe even closer than Amy was to him… And she was gone? Just like that? Why would someone hurt her? Or any of her family? Cheese! What was the point of killing…a Chao…?

He let out a hard sob, and there was nothing but silence coming from the device. _I had talked to her earlier this morning…_

The kit was left alone for a moment before he heard Sonic's voice again, _"Tails I…know this is hard, but I need you."_

The fox blinked away some of the tears, sniffing, "N-N-N…" he swallowed another sob threatening to come up, "Need m-me?"

" _I don't know what to do Tails,"_ if he didn't think that it wasn't serious by this point, he would now. Sonic always knew what to do. It didn't matter if he thought of a plan or was thinking on his feet, he could find heads or tails of any situation. _"I'm too far away from the city and-"_

Tails jumped out of his skin when a shrill ringing impinged his ears. The half shout/half cry stunned Sonic on the other side. _"Tails? What's going on?"_

"N-Nothing," the kit was slowly and steadily bringing his pulse down. He stood up on wobbly legs and trudged over to the phone hanging on the wall, namesakes dragging on the ground behind him, "It's just the phone…" Tails figured that he would answer it so his brain could recuperate and function beyond making the fox hyperventilate. "I'm gonna answer it," he grabbed the phone with his unoccupied hand, the communicator in his other being lowered a bit, "H-Hello?"

" _Tails! I'm so thankful that you answ – sweetie? Are you alright?"_

The yellow vulpine nodded against the phone as he futilely wiped his face. He then remembered that the other couldn't see him, "Y-Yes Ms. Vanilla, I'm fi-" Tails' whole system went stock-still. He glanced down to the communicator in his hand. His finger was still pressing the button and Tails could _feel_ the surprise coming from Sonic. He held it up so the hedgehog could hear the conversation clearly.

" _Tails?"_

"I'm fine," the kit finished his sentence. His voice was calm, but on the inside, he was freaking out. _How? What? Who am I talking to? Who is Sonic looking at?_ "Um…" he used his arm to wipe under his nose before sniffing, "Do need something? Is Cream okay?" _This is crazy!_ Tails was trying to think of an explanation, but his mind was blank.

" _Oh yes Cream is alright, but I need a favor of you. Are you able to come over right now sweetie?"_

Tails furrowed his brow, "Yes I could, why?"

" _Because one of your friends, Espio, needs to desperately get to the hospital. I would have called an ambulance, but I knew that you would be able to get over here quicker."_

"Espio?" Tails couldn't remember the last time he'd seen the guy. A few months ago maybe? What have the Chaotix gotten into that Espio needed to go to the hospital? "Uh…What's wrong with him? Are Vector and Charmy there too?"

" _I don't know where his friends are but, oh Tails…he's so hurt. There's blood all over him. It's all coming from the cuts and…his eye needs to be taken care of before it gets infected…"_

"That sounds critical…" the kit furrowed his brow, wanting to be concerned but he wasn't sure yet. The gears in his brain were turning now. The Vanilla he was speaking to could easily be an imposter and going over there could be a trap. Or, the trio Sonic was with could be pawns of a trap as well.

Tails held the phone away from him, "Sonic-"

" _Tails, you're not going over there."_

"But what if Espio's really hurt? And that…that you're with the phonies?" Tails was hoping that the former question was true. Not that he wanted the chameleon hurt, it was that he wanted Cream and Vanilla _alive._

" _I think I know a robot from a real person Tails."_

"Eggman could've made them look real, somehow…" the kit whispered to his best friend, setting his resolve, "I have to go Sonic; Espio could be in real trouble." _And Cream would be waiting for me, breathing._

" _Don't-!"_

Tails let go of the button and put the phone back against his ear, _"-ails?"_

"Sorry Ms. Vanilla, I had to step away from the phone for a minute. I'll be there, don't worry!"

" _Thank goodness! Please hurry!"_ The line went dead.

The kit hung the phone up and sighed, running a hand down his face. _I mean, she sounded sincere enough. She acted like she usually does, caring on top of caring._ Nodding to himself, Tails jogged over to the workbench, grabbed his screwdriver, and hovered over to the plane. He flipped back up the flap guarding its inner workings and screwed the screws in place.

He threw the tool away before hopping up into the Tornado, starting it up and opening the garage simultaneously. The yellow Mobian then brought the communicator back up to his mouth, pressing the button, "I'm going over there Sonic. Stay where you are until I drop Espio off and find you. Then we can solve this mystery!"

There was silence on the other end and Tails was scared that the other wasn't going to answer, that it _was_ a trap Sonic had run into, but then his brother's familiar voice rang out, _"…Look at you, growin' up on me!"_ Tails' lips twitched, _"Go, but just be careful, alright?"_

"Got it Sonic! And you be careful too, Eggman can be up to anything."

" _Have you met me?"_ Tails rolled his eyes, _"And remember that you have weapons in that plane of yours. If you need to blow somethin' up, blow somethin' up."_

The fox managed to laugh as he took off, _The wise words of Sonic the hedgehog._

* * *

 **We're hitting the ground running! Hope that you guys liked it!**

 **Next chapter…The appearance of the chameleon we all love to hate.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co. (goes to cry in a corner)**

 **A/N- Oh my gosh guys. Thank you SO much for the amount of support I've received! The follows, the favorites, the reviews…I cherish them all! Just…wow…I appreciate all of it guys, I promise I do. :)**

 **Chapter 2- Clones…?**

 _Skydivers are completely insane,_ Espio thought, witnessing firsthand that freefalling out of the sky was nowhere as entertaining as they made it seem. Of course, they probably didn't have a near fatal injury that felt like hundreds of needles piercing the area where his eye had been making the fall highly uncomfortable (to put it lightly). They also had a parachute to assist in breaking their fall; from what the chameleon could see, all he had was an unforgiving tiled roof that was constantly growing in size as he plummeted.

The reptile took a breath to help slow down his rapidly beating heart, but it seemed to do the opposite, making the pulsating organ work overtime. Especially when Espio realized that there was no way to escape this situation. There was no Omega (or anyone period, which held his curiosity) here to save him, and there wasn't any way for him to not hit the home, causing an immense amount of pain that he didn't wish to feel.

Espio was currently falling head-first, the worst position he could possibly be in. Believing that he had enough time to rotate his body so that he would land on his back, the chameleon began flailing in the air, arms circulating so that he could move the way he wished. However, it seemed like his depth of field was horribly off because he had suddenly crashed into the roof of the house, right arm caught between his body and the unyielding tiles. The appendage promptly snapped in half, the sickening crack ringing in the reptile's head.

He had no time to yell in agony. His body harshly bounced off the tilted roof before tumbling down it. Espio was briefly airborne again until he hit the grassy ground, not able to move because of the pain paralyzing his whole system. The chameleon stared unseeingly at the small home in front of him, dainty and comfortable looking. He felt blood dripping down his face…stomach…arm…into the green under him, staining it an unsightly brown.

Even when the door before him opened, nothing moved except for his single working eye, slowly focusing on the being that was staring right back at him. He recognized the other's voice quicker than their appearance. It was hard to not identify it since Espio had heard more than enough of the shouting alto when in the warzone that was Station Square.

Apparently, Vanilla the rabbit was alive.

That didn't surprise Espio really. He had seen her and her child splayed out on the sidelines of the battlefield, soaked by their own blood. The reptile deduced that they were dead, that his robots had done the job. However, somehow she wasn't. He may have misjudged what he saw. So no, that wasn't surprising at all.

What shocked him to the core however, was the worried look on the rabbit's face. Shouldn't the other be blasting his brains out with a semiautomatic already? Why was she just standi – why was she coming _closer_? She was carefully picking him up now. He was too stunned to react accordingly, not like his hurt body would let him do it anyway. What was happening?

Espio was confused. He had never been this confused.

There was no reason for Vanilla be concerned. Concerned for the _enemy_ no less. Wait…maybe she wasn't. Maybe Espio wasn't as alone as he thought. Shadow's whole group of annoyances could be in that house, waiting to tear him to shreds. Vanilla was putting up a front to catch him off guard. No. It didn't matter how broken he was, Espio wasn't going to go down peacefu-

"Espio dear…You're shaking," the chameleon's train of thought suddenly derailed and threw itself off a cliff, crashing in a fiery explosion. He gazed up into the mother's face, seeing a troubled expression that surely couldn't be faked. And were her eyes…getting damp? "We're going to get you help soon," her voice was meant to get him to relax, but it only made him tenser, "Don't you worry sweetie."

 _Sweetie?_

This _was_ Vanilla correct? GUN's second-in-command? Or was this a twin sister that Espio had only learned about at this very moment?

Espio remained silent as the older rabbit took him into her home. His eye immediately scanned the cozy living room, seeing nothing that would shout out that a large group of stubborn Mobians had been there. There was no yelling when he entered, no gunshots, no cursing, no body-controlling telekinesis…no anything. Just the smell of something baking.

The chameleon let out a sound mixed between a groan and a hiss when he was placed on an unstained sofa – well, formerly unstained. When Vanilla pulled away, she bumped his injured arm and he involuntarily yelled in agony, the unnatural friction between the two bones there surging waves of pain throughout his system.

The rabbit gasped and held out her hand like she wanted to caress the arm, but knew it would do more harm than good. It paused inches away from the purple scales, "I'm so sorry! Oh gosh…" Warm chocolate irises roamed his whole body, "…Espio what happened to-"

"Mama?" Two heads whirled toward the direction of the noise, which had Espio looking at the entrance of the kitchen. Cream and her Chao appeared before Vanilla could tell them to not come out, "What is going on out-" two pairs of eyes widened to their fullest at the sight of the broken chameleon. The bunny – with patches of flour on her dress – was bolted to the floor. She did nothing but stare.

"Cream…" Espio noticed the worry directed at the daughter. Any mother would be concerned about her child seeing such a traumatizing sight.

However, unlike any other child, Cream didn't run away. She slowly walked over, bottom lip quivering, "M-Mr. Espio?" The chameleon's brow furrowed marginally at that. So he _was_ in the Vanilla's house, not some mysterious twin's, and Cream the rabbit wasn't trying to hurt him either. She had been on Shadow's side. Why wasn't she attacking him? Why wasn't _anyone_ attacking him? Not that he was complaining, but why? None of this was making sense. And Espio _hated_ that.

"Who…Who did this to you Mr. Espio?" the bunny's inquiry snapped him out of his thoughts, but Vanilla took over before he could think of a response.

The mother took a step away, looking at her daughter with a small relieved smile, "Cream…how about you stay here and keep Espio company while I get some help for him?"

The younger rabbit didn't respond verbally; she just nodded. The Chao on top of her head seemed highly distressed. Vanilla nearly sprinted out of the room, and suddenly Espio was alone with two of his adversaries, one much less of a threat than the other. The chameleon wasn't even sure if that statement was valid or not, their behavior screaming anything but 'I will take you down'. They were helping him, for some reason. Their changed attitudes were something to think about as well…

But none of that was important. It didn't matter if Espio was lost beyond words, if he was hurt and bleeding, if he was surrounded by kindness, if he was _nowhere_ near this 'ARK' he was supposed to be taken to…

Because Espio was still going to kill them. The war wasn't over yet.

It didn't have to be right now, of course (it would be a bit difficult at the moment), but sooner or later, the two rabbits and their pet would be suffering the safe fate as Shadow. Dead with no chance of revival. And then…he was going to find his other opponents, wherever they were. They weren't safe. Espio would track them down one by one if he had to. He'd enjoy sucking every ounce of life out of them…especially Penumbra…

"Mr. Espio?"

Said reptile blinked one eyelid, brought back to reality by the bunny in front of him. She was staring worriedly at his wounds, eventually finding his face, "What happened to y-your eye, Mr. Espio?"

Espio just stared for a moment, wondering if he should either stay silent or answer, coming to terms with this unexpected situation. He might as well satiate the other Mobian, for he knew she wouldn't shut up until he did, "…S-Someone," he licked his dry and chapped lips before continuing, "Someone scratched it out."

The Chao had taken flight, hovering irritatingly around him. Cream tilted her head a bit at his answer, "Who did it? It was someone mean, right?"

Was this kid really the same one who had been on the front lines? "Y-Yes," Espio coughed and cringed as a result when the action jarred his aching ribs, "Penumbra was…mean, to say the least."

"Penumbra?" The name left her tongue like she had never said or even heard of it before, "Who is that? A new bad guy?"

Amnesia was the first thing that came to Espio's mind. But then that conclusion sounded ridiculous. Even if all _three_ of the beings in this house had forgotten all about fighting him and things of that sort, why would they remember him? He had never interacted with them before his plan was put into place. Sure, he knew of them because of research and such (have to know your enemies), but that didn't explain how they were acting now. Like…Like they were acquaintances, _allies_ , when they were anything but.

…Maybe he could use this to his advantage.

Espio nodded to the child's question, "A very bad guy. Cream," hearing her name come out of his throat felt foreign to him, "he hurt me a lot. He's evil," he inwardly smirked at the slight tremble of the other's body, "He wants to do the same to everyone as he has done to me."

"Really?" the bunny's voice came out as a squeak before it became stronger, "Then he will be stopped soon!" Espio blinked, not expecting the wide smile on Cream's muzzle, "Mr. Sonic will find him and save the day like he always does!"

…Now that didn't sound right at _all._ At least, not paired with the hope and excitement laced throughout those words.

Before Espio could say anything on that subject, Vanilla re-entered the living room humming a light-hearted tune. The chameleon noticed that she had a wet cloth in her hands. She strolled right in front of him and sank to her knees, "Help will be here in a minute dear," she murmured softly as she lightly scrubbed away a bit of the blood on Espio's front, "Tails will be here to get you really soon."

"Tails?" Espio's mouth repeated on its own. That fox kit was coming to get him. He didn't know how he felt about that. The vulpine could have this weird amnesia as well (probably a side effect from the teleportation) or he could end Espio's life then and there. The chameleon would fight back, yes, but he wouldn't be able to do much. He had no weapons on him and he could hardly move without most of his muscles screaming at him. And he was sure that he wouldn't be able to turn invisible, not until he was better, anyway – which would be very valuable when he would inevitably recognized at the hospital and, later on, arrested. Espio was really banking on the fox having amnesia…Escaping prison later would be easier than trying to fight right now.

Vanilla hummed in affirmation, "The sweetie will be here in no more than five minutes, then he can take you in his plane to the hospital to get fixed up."

That was another curveball Espio wasn't ready for. The fox still had his plane? But he had caused it to crash! The reptile had seen the aftermath, and there was no way for it to be functional again. Also, how was it that everyone seemed to be already on their feet except him? Had they all teleported to this place (which was strangely not eaten by the void. In fact, where _did_ all of that darkness go?) at different times? Was that even possible? As you can tell, Espio knew next to nothing about Chaos Control.

"Mr. Tails is coming?" If possible, Cream's smile got wider, "Then you will get to the hospital in no time Mr. Espio!" The chameleon didn't answer, not paying attention. He was still lost in the tornado that he called his thoughts.

* * *

It barely took ten minutes for Tails to reach his destination. The yellow Mobian brought his prized Tornado down to a soft landing, the plane slowing down to a stop right in the rabbits' front yard, the nose of the aircraft pointing at the closed brown wooden door.

With Sonic's 'helpful' advice echoing in the back of his mind, the kit pulled out a remote and flipped a switch on it. Tails watched as two missile launchers appeared on the sides of the place, one on the left and one on the right. Holding the control tightly, the vulpine cut the engine before hovering safely to the ground.

He hastily jogged over to the front door, but not without some nervousness bubbling up in his stomach. He tried to not get too riled up however. He believed that the _real_ Vanilla would open the door, and that he wouldn't need to use such…explosive force.

It wasn't long before he spotted a patch of brown grass that directly contrasted its surroundings. Tails squatted to check it out, and – with the help of sight _and_ smell – quickly determined that it was blood. A smile threatened to show on his face, but he held it back. This could be all part of a trap to lure him in.

 _Well,_ the kit thought, stepping over the stained green, _I got something for Eggman if he thinks his plan is going to go off without a hitch..._ A wave of sadness then washed over Tails, having him hesitate to knock on the inviting wood in front of him, _But please don't let be a scheme…she can't be gone, she just can't._

Steeling himself, Tails rapped his knuckles on the door thrice. He barely had time to lower his fist when it flew open, an over joyous Vanilla practically pulling him inside. The kit subtly disarmed the missile launchers outside, "Thank you for coming on such short notice. I know you're sometimes busy…"

Tails let out a little laugh while rubbing the back of his head, a trait he had picked up from a specific hedgehog, "It's quite alright. If there's someone who needs help, I'm always – Oof!"

The kit was interrupted by the sudden hug of a more than happy bunny. His cheeks burned when Cream pulled back, cinnamon irises glinting, "Yay you made it! Now hurry and take care of Mr. Espio! He really needs it!"

He grinned at her, "That's who I came for! Now whe-" Tails' mouth gaped when he saw the beaten-up chameleon sitting on the couch, looking back at him. The kit had to resist the urge to take a step back, or matter of fact, take many steps to the nearest trash can. There was so much blood, and the reptile's face was the most gruesome Tails had ever seen. How was Cream not that bothered by this?

"Wow…" the kit breathed out, approaching the purple Mobian, "Long time no see, I guess…" Tails muttered out as he took in all of the injuries Espio had. Yeah, he needed to get to the hospital as soon as possible, "What happened to you? And where are Vector and Charmy?" If they were in the same condition Espio was in, they could be in huge trouble.

"Mr. Espio said something about a bad man named Penumbra attacking him!" Cream provided, Cheese nodding feverously beside her.

Tails had never heard that name before. He was 'a bad man'? So a new villain? The kit regarded the chameleon, "Is that true?"

Espio nodded, the piercing single-eyed stare sending a shiver down the fox's spine.

 _There hasn't been other reportings of this 'Penumbra', not that I've heard anyway,_ Tails pursed his lips, thinking, _Maybe…Maybe it was that Penumbra guy who made the fake Vanilla, Cream, and Cheese?_ "What does he look like?" Tails asked. He needed to know so he could tell Sonic what to look out for.

Espio was silent for a moment, seeming to be deciding something for some reason, before saying, "He has black fur with dark stripes on his quills. Red eyes."

Shadow popped into Tails' mind, but he mentally threw that possibility in the trash. The striped hedgehog wouldn't do something like this (to an ally, and maybe Sonic on a good day), and plus, he was in the hospital. Then it was probably some kind of clone, which brought back Eggman as the main cause for this. Tails wouldn't put it past the doctor to do something of this caliber, making a clone so that Shadow would be framed. _But why name it something else though…?_

"And Vector and Charmy?" Tails questioned, backing up in the conversation a bit.

"I don't know," Espio answered lowly.

The kit blinked, "What do you mea-"

"My head hurts," the reptile cut him off, "And so does everything else. Can we go now?"

To say that Tails was surprised would be an understatement, but he shook it off. Anyone would be a bit irritable when their whole body was protesting against them. The young genius nodded, "Okay, so um…can you walk?"

The wounded Mobian nodded before he cautiously pushed himself off of the sofa, the two rabbits beside Tails watching in pity; it was obvious how much pain the chameleon had to be going through. Espio had almost stood up to full height, but then his face twisted up in major discomfort and he began to fall forwards. Tails was quick, stepping forward so the reptile could lean on him to prevent him from colliding with the ground, "My apologies," Espio grunted against the vulpine's shoulder.

The kit turned sideways, wrapping an arm around the other one's waist and guiding Espio's uninjured arm around his neck for support, "It's no problem!" Tails reassured, "You're hurt; there's no reason for me to get mad." When he didn't receive a response, the fox peered over his shoulder at the other occupants of the home, "Thanks for calling! He's safe with me, don't worry."

The rabbits and Chao waved goodbye, smiling even though Tails could see the hint of worry that refused to leave, "Take care," Vanilla said before clasping her hands together, "And could you please contact us when Espio is safe and sound?"

"Please?" Cream echoed her mother, fingers entertained in the same position.

Tails couldn't refuse one bunny, let alone _two,_ "Sure!" he started to move forward towards the front door, Espio matching his shortened stride, "I'll make sure to let you know. And well…if you see Vector or Charmy around and they're hurt, call me again okay?" the family nodded, "Alright! See you later!" the kit gave the trio a grin before focusing solely on getting out of the house with a chameleon hobbling along beside him.

Once they got outside, the older rabbit called out another goodbye before the door shut with a click behind them. Tails let out a little sigh as they made their way over to his plane, keeping himself from actually looking at the ninja. He _was_ on the side of the disfigured eye (if he could even call it that anymore).

"So…" the kit started, the silence between the two somewhat awkward. Sure, he and Espio hadn't been together very often, but when they had been, the atmosphere wasn't this uncomfortable, "What exactly happened?"

"I was attacked, obviously," Espio nearly spat out and Tails couldn't hide the flinch. Maybe he was acting like Shadow, who would get highly irritated after a loss. But the kit really didn't expect that from Espio, usually he was more level-headed.

"Well, yeah," yellow ears drooped some, "But um…what about the details?" The reptile turned his head so that Tails could see the withering glare, and the fox immediately winced and looked away, ears sinking further, "Right, those aren't really important anyway…" _Let's just hurry up and get him to the hospital…_

When the duo reached the side of the plane, Tails lead Espio to the seat behind his. It took some time, but the purple Mobian eventually got comfortable in the aircraft. "Alright," the kit hopped into the cockpit of the Tornado. He started it up, activating whatever was necessary, "Ready for takeoff!" he wasn't surprised when didn't get any response from the back.

"Tails!" The kit glanced over at Vanilla who was standing at the front door with a basket of some sort in her hand. Leaving the plane on, he smiled apologetically at a disgruntled Espio before flying over to the older rabbit, "Sorry for stopping you sweetie," she placed the basket in Tails' arms; he smelled the delicious aroma of chocolate chip cookies, "We made those for Shadow. Would you mind giving those to him?"

"Of course not!" the kit nodded, "I'll make sure he gets them."

"Thank you!"

The fox saluted her with a smile before hovering back over to his plane, glancing over at Espio, who looked like he didn't hear any of the conversation he just had. That or didn't care. The two-tailed Mobian shook his head subtly as he took off into the blue skies.

Tails suspected that the ride would be silent, and during the first five minutes it was, causing the kit to glance back occasionally to make sure the other hadn't passed out from blood loss back there. Each time was for naught however, Espio would be either gazing at the blurred landscape or be staring right back at him. With the latter, Tails would just force out a laugh before returning to his piloting duties.

The quiet was a constant up in the plane, so the young genius nearly jumped out of his skin when a sharp static noise reached his ears. He glanced down at the communicator in his lap, _I swear this thing isn't supposed to be scary._ Chuckling at himself, Tails picked it up and pressed the button, "Hello?"

" _Tails! Everything alright over there? No traps? Didn't have to blow anythin' up?"_

His chuckles grew louder, "Everything's fine Sonic! Cream and her family were perfectly healthy, and well…Espio isn't," Sapphires peeked to the back of the plane to see one golden eye wide in surprise. Tails couldn't fathom why, "Got him up in the plane right now!"

" _Great! So I'm with the fakes then?"_

"Yeah, Eggman must have made them to provoke you or something, definitely a trap," Tails then frowned a bit, "Oh, and speaking of Eggman, he's got a clone of Shadow running around somewhere."

" _A clone? Shads isn't going to like the sound of this! More fakers…jeez…"_

Tails was going to reply, but a sharp gasp coming from behind him gained his attention. He rose a brow over at Espio who seemed to be frozen, "Espio? Are you alright?"

It took a while for the chameleon to focus on him, "I'm…fine. I hit my arm."

"Oookay. Just be careful, don't want to make your injuries any worse," at the other's distracted nod, Tails returned to the conversation he had with Sonic, "I know right, more complications. I guess he really stepped it up to get those emeralds. And Penumbra – the clone's name apparently – is really aggressive. He got Espio really bad."

" _Well, if it's a clone of Mr. Grumpy I'm really not surprised. Can't joke a little bit around the guy without him biting my head off,"_ there was a snicker coming from the other end, _"And Penumbra huh? Guess Ole Eggy got attached to his little pet already."_

"Which is kinda bad, considering that it means that Eggman thinks it's going to be around for a while."

" _Ha! McNosehair's got a lil screws loose then."_

Tails grinned, "Yeah! The clone's gonna be as good as gone as soon as we find it."

" _And how are we gonna do that bud? If it's as fast as Shadow is, it could be anywhere by now."_

"Hmm…If it's looking for the Chaos emeralds like I think it is, then maybe…no…we still won't know exactly where it will be…" the kit tapped his chin before another idea came to mind, "Hey Sonic, how do you feel about corpse transport?"

"… _I already got blood on me, what's a few pints more? Smellin' like a murder scene had always been a dream of mine, you know?"_

Tails rolled his eyes, "There's a good reason for it, Sonic. I can bring them back to the lab and scan 'em. See if they have something in common that Eggman used to make them with we can use to track down this so-called Penumbra before he hurts anybody else."

" _Great idea Tails! But, I don't know, wouldn't just taking blood samples be good enough?"_

Tails blinked, "That…That would be easier yeah."

" _See, this is what I'm here for, to stop us from gettin' trialed the first-degree."_

A smile spread across his face, "I'll head straight there after I drop Espio off and pick up some supplies," Tails tapped the screen on his device and it came to life. After pressing a couple buttons, Sonic's location appeared as a blinking green dot, his coordinates up on the top left, "Just stay there until I come."

" _Roger dodger! See ya then lil bro!"_

"Right!" Tails disconnected the line and dropped the communicator back in his lap, "You heard that Espio?" he threw his voice to the back of the Tornado, "Justice is going to be served!"

"…Yeah. I heard."

Noticing how strained the chameleon's voice sounded and linking it to deteriorating health, Tails pushed his plane to go faster.

* * *

It wasn't long before the yellow vulpine was back in the Tornado, having gone to the hospital and back home. At the former, the pair of trudging Mobians had been noticed immediately and not a minute later the chameleon was loaded on a stretcher. Tails had waved to the reptile being rolled away, but the action wasn't returned, Espio having closed his one good eye in relief.

After the kit was alone again, he had went up to visit Shadow, having been told the room number by Sonic when asked, but he didn't get any reply when he had knocked on the Ultimate Lifeform's door. The curious cub cracked open the piece of metal separating him and the hedgehog only to see Shadow curled up on his bed, resting peacefully. He looked much better than being splayed out unconsciously on the white mattress, vital signs being so low that it was a constant threat that one of them could stop at any moment.

He simply observed for a short while before tip-toeing inside and placed the basket of cookies he had with him on the stand beside the bed. He gave an inaudible laugh before stepping out of the room and shutting the door, soon after that leaving the hospital.

Tails was in the air now with a bag of sanitized syringes, close to where the blinking green dot was. He had been flying for about twenty minutes. The fox had been thinking about Eggman's little trap, the more questioning parts of it anyway. More specifically, the falling out of the sky part.

The white light bit was something Tails could kinda guess about. If Penumbra was Shadow's clone, then it was more than likely that it had inherited some of the Ultimate Lifeform's abilities, so it had used Chaos Control to transport the other clones. The thing that had Tails stumped was how Eggman knew where Sonic was at the time. The doctor had no way of knowing, right? Maybe he didn't know where Sonic was, he just dropped them there thinking that someone would eventually run into them, which would get back to Sonic anyway.

Tails just sighed. The doctor must have been really upset that his robot home invasion didn't work out.

Not five minutes later, he saw a familiar blue hedgehog waving at him from the ground below. The yellow Mobian came down for a smooth landing, leaving the plane on as he jumped out, needles in hand, and hovered over where the bleeding clones were.

"Wow…" Tails' gaze took in the slumped forms of the Mobians he had just seen. They looked so…dead. He didn't blame Sonic for thinking that these were the real ones; he would have made the same mistake, "Eggman went all out huh?"

Sonic put a hand on his hip, inwardly frowning at the feeling of the drying blood on his body, "Sure did buddy. Too far if I say so myself," the blue hero watched as the vulpine squatted down to poke and prod at Vanilla's outfit, "I was confused about the GUN getup too, maybe he had a spare lying around and he was too lazy to throw it out?"

"It's probably the same reason he had Cream's and Cheese's ties around their heads," Tails stood back up, pointing to the younger ones.

Sonic scratched behind a blue ear, "Let's just say Egghead had a lapse in judgement and call it a day," the hedgehog eyed the bag the other was holding, more than glad that those syringes weren't going anywhere near his skin, "So can you get to uh…needling Tails? Blood doesn't look good on me, and I'm sure the slaughterhouse cologne isn't doing me any favors either."

The kit scoffed, "Sure, I'll get to _needling_ right away," Tails opened the clear plastic and took out the syringe that had Cheese's name written on it in permanent marker; he had done it to make the margin of error smaller. Mixing up blood was a big no-no. He took the safety cap off of it before crouching next to the Chao. A frown marred his muzzle as he took hold of a stubby arm, "It doesn't matter if they're fake, it still feels really weird…" he muttered to the other with him.

Sonic nodded, pursing his lips as he surveyed the trio, "I hear ya. I have to keep reminding myself that these aren't the real ones."

Tails hummed in agreement as he filled the medical tool with the red liquid, "And the thing that's getting to me is that they have real blood too. Clones usually don't have that."

The azure speedster took a sniff of the air and scrunched up his nose, "And usually don't smell like this. It's like someone real had actually _died,"_ Sonic glanced up at the clouds floating by, the white puffs not caring about the gruesome sight below, "All I know is that I don't want to be around when they start decomposing."

The kit paused in putting the cap back on the filled needle. He glanced over at the two cloned rabbits, gears turning in his head, "I don't think we should leave them like this…"

Sonic's gaze snapped down to him, "What are ya talkin' about Tails? We can't take 'em with us."

"I didn't say anything about that…There's enough space around here…

The hero caught on to what the other was saying quickly, "You want us to…burry them?"

"Yeah, so someone else can't find them and cause any unnecessary commotion," the fox went over to the fake Cream and prepared her syringe, "Don't want anyone going through what we've went through," he commented, throwing Sonic a weak grin.

Sonic made a clicking sound in the back of his throat before shrugging, "You're right bud, no need to cause any unnecessary heart attacks," the hero, while Tails was drawing clone Cream's blood, jogged far over to the side and angled himself that no debris would fly his brother's way. He then spin dashed the ground, thankful that the dirt was soft enough to easily dig through.

The fox watched as the hedgehog dug one grave big enough for three. He then put the fake bunny's blood in the bag and palmed the last syringe; Vanilla's. Tails went over and gripped her upper arm, plunging the needle into the synthesized flesh, observing as Sonic finished up, hopping out of the hole with grains of brown covering his body. The kit let out a snicker when Sonic shook himself only for nothing to change.

Sonic heard this and pouted, folding his arms in front of himself, "Ya done yet? I don't think I've wanted a shower more in my life than right now."

"Yeah yeah," Tails picked himself off the ground, dropping the last sharp tool into the plastic bag and sealing it, "I'm done," he placed the needles at his feet before going over to pick up the limp Chao. He swiftly made his way to the impromptu grave, lying the blue pet down in the loose earth. Hearing fabric being dragged, Tails glanced back to see Sonic bringing Vanilla over. The hero locked eyes with him and gestured over to fake Cream. The fox shuffled over to the bunny and used two arms to pick her up. Tails stared down into those half-lidded cinnamon irises, dull and lifeless. For a second time that day, an uncomfortable shiver went down his spine.

"She looks _exactly_ like Cream…" Tails mumbled as he went over and lowered the copy into the space Sonic left between Cheese and Vanilla.

The speedster saw how confused the other looked and decided to fix that. He smirked, "Well, that's how copying somethin' works Tails. As a tech wiz, I thought you knew that. You don't type the same stuff over and over again, do ya? If you do, _man_ do I feel bad for your fingers."

Tails stuck his tongue out and Sonic was glad that he lifted the mood, "Of _course_ I know how to copy and paste. I'm just curious to know how _you_ know about that. You're basically an old man, avoiding computers like the plague."

Sonic gaped, "You did _not_ just call me… You know what? Just for that comment, you're gonna help me spread the dirt over them," the hedgehog made a 'follow me' motion with a finger as he stood beside the massive mound of earth.

Tails shook his head, "But I can't get dirty!" he floundered for an excuse, "My plane would need to get cleaned!"

"It already does because of that chameleon blood in the back seat," there was a mischievous glint in the other's emerald eyes, "A couple specks of dirt won't change anything."

Seeing the grin on the hedgehog's face that meant 'If you don't come help, all of this dirt will go on top of _you_ instead of them', Tails slumped in defeat and dragged himself over to the pile, "Okay fine…"

"Great decision, young whippersnapper."

* * *

Sonic, feeling relaxed and carefree after his much needed shower, was lying in a comfortable position on his couch, hands linked behind his head with his eyes closed. His legs were crossed on the sofa, one foot moving to the beat of the up-lifting and bass-filled song that poured from the stereo sitting on the left side of his living room.

A small chuckle then escaped the blue one's lips as his mind wandered back to when the duo had stopped by the real Vanilla's house. Everything was going fine as Tails told them that Espio was getting help in the hospital, but the faces Cream and Vanilla made when the kit asked for their blood had Sonic stifling his laughs. The mixture of horrified, confused, and unwilling expressions on the rabbits' usually happy faces was hilarious to the hedgehog, and so was Tails' stuttering afterwards.

"SONIC!"

The hedgehog immediately sat up on the furniture, reacting as if his chili dogs were beginning to burn. Disregarding the thought of exactly _how_ Tails' voice was heard over the loud music, Sonic hopped off the couch and zipped over to where the kit was, his garage. Sonic flew open the door in his way and searched around crazily, muscles tensed to fight off whatever was attacking Tails.

When he didn't see any rampaging robots, the hero calmed down somewhat, quills relaxing down to their regular state. Sonic went deeper into the lab, music still pumping in the background, "Um Tails? I thought it was said that no one was supposed to have any more heart attacks today?" the kit, sitting at a computer in the corner of the room, was staring at the word-filled screen. Sonic was worried again, but for a different reason, "Tails? What's going on?" the hedgehog strolled over and put a hand on his brother's shoulder, brow furrowing at the slight tremble he felt.

"They're different…" the fox said under his breath.

"What?"

"They're different!" Tails rose his voice, gesturing over to the two vials of blood that had been scanned, "I don't know why, but they are!"

"Calm down Tails!" Sonic pleaded and the other took a deep breath, doing what the hedgehog said, "Now explain to me what you're talkin' about in a way that I won't go deaf."

"Those two vials," Tails pointed to the left one, then the right, "Belong to Cream and her clone, respectively. I tested them, and…and the results were different. Not enough to be obvious, but it's _there_ ," at Sonic's befuddled look, he elaborated, "If I hadn't known where the blood had came from, I would have thought that it came from identical twins."

"…And that's bad?"

"Not bad, just _unexpected,_ " Tails' namesakes were twitching behind him, "You see, identical twins are nearly clones of each other, but only _nearly._ There can be some characteristics in their genes that could differ, like one could be more prone to a certain disease than the other. That, among other differences, come from the environment, which can affect how-" Tails paused when he saw Sonic's brain short-circuiting. He swallowed thickly and cut to the chase, "What I'm trying to say is that the three we buried today weren't clones. They're different."

The blue hero's mind came back online. He frowned, starting to see why Tails was so worked up, "But they couldn't have been twins or anything like that," Sonic unconsciously tapped his foot against the floor, "If they weren't clones, then what were they?"

"...I don't know."

* * *

 **Ooo…now Espio knows that something's up. And he may not be too happy about Shadow being alive. XD Hope you guys liked it!**

 **Next chapter…seeing double!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer- (still sobbing) No…**

 **Chapter 3- Mirror image**

A few miles away from Station Square – and as many miles up – Angel Island floated above the ground far below, casting a large shadow that would block the warm sun for those unfortunate enough to be caught unaware. A light wind ran through the trees upon the island, its hollow whistle one of the many background noises provided for those who inhabited the flying landmass. Natural fauna made up the other sounds that prevented the island from ever being completely silent, birds chirping along with insects as the sun shone brightly.

In the center of the vast floating isle, there stood a significant shrine, its tip seeing over most of the high reaching trees surrounding it. There was moss growing in the cracks of the concrete and there were pieces of the stone missing from the giant monument, but it didn't mean it held any less authority and power. Held at the very top was the Master Emerald, showering everything near it in a soft green glow that was constantly pulsating. The large jewel had no smudges, no cracks, and no chips; it was perfection while overlooking the island where it was kept. Its home.

The being in charge of keeping it in place was stretched out on the steps leading up to the viridescent gem. He was soaking in the sun's rays like the plants that inhabited the land he guarded. In his covered hands was the sky blue Chaos emerald, nearly the same color as its ever present rival above. Purple eyes were constantly scanning the azure jewel, waiting to see if it would suffer the same fate as the other which was quite the distance away from Angel Island. And Knuckles would like to keep it like that. Having one emerald drained of its power was enough to cause stress, anymore and the echidna was going to invest in a brown paper bag.

The guardian switched his gaze to the Master Emerald, seeing the life and energy that expelled from every inch of the precious gem. Knuckles just stared into its depths, more than relieved that the larger emerald wasn't the one to lose power.

He would very soon learn that one could jinx themselves with thoughts _along_ with outspoken words.

The echidna's breath hitched when the ME lost all of its bright green glow in less than a second. His heart plummeted down to his stomach when the constant breeze slowed to a stop. Knowing that he only had a few precious moments, Knuckles scrambled up to his feet and jumped into the air as soon as Angel Island began to fall out of the sky.

 _This is bad,_ he thought as he spread out his dreadlocks, catching the wind under them to slow down his decent considerably, _This is very bad._ The isle hadn't been over any sort of body of water, meaning that at this height and speed at which it was falling, the earth waiting below would suffer some serious damage. Knuckles knew that the island wasn't over any type of civilization, but he was still immensely concerned. Along with the earth, _Angel Island_ itself could be irreversibly damaged as well.

"Dammit!" the echidna shouted through clenched teeth as he angled his body and swooped down to where the Master Emerald was still secure in its shrine. There had to be _something_ that he could do to prevent the inevitable catastrophe. Chaos emerald in hand, Knuckles caught up with the plummeting landmass and glided over to the ME, maneuvering his red locks so that he was falling at the same rate everything else was, appearing to be levitating in the air.

Knuckles desperately searched the gem in front of him, trying and failing to create a link. He couldn't feel anything coming from the ME, frustrating him to no end. "What in the heck is _happening?_ " Options extremely limited, the echidna was about to grab the Master and get the hell out of dodge to minimize any damage to it, but then the large jewel flickered back to life.

The echidna didn't have time to be surprised when he slammed into the concrete below him, his knees taking the brunt of the damage. Knuckles hissed before pushing the pain to the back of his mind. The guardian winced as he got his feet under him, focused on nothing but the Master Emerald that was shining like it was before Angel Island decided to stop flying.

"What…" Knuckles took a step forward and placed his unoccupied hand on the ME, feeling the normal chaotic energy crackling underneath his fingertips. He was staring into the endless green within the gem. His brow then furrowed when a faded and watered down image appeared in the very center of the jewel. Knuckles could barely make it out; it was like trying to see through a sea of white noise.

The echidna peered closer and was barely able to identify what the Master was showing him. He saw…He saw snow and…machinery? Metal structures? The image panned a little bit, and some snowcapped mountains were shown to him. The picture only lasted a couple of seconds, but it was enough to identify the location.

"White Acropolis…Why would the Master Emerald show that to me? Especially now that it's abandoned?" Knuckles frowned deeply, "Or is _supposed_ to be. I _swear_ if the doctor's behind this he will regret ever messing with the guardian of the-" the echidna's voice then promptly got stuck in his throat when he glanced down at the Chaos emerald in his hand, seeing it as dull and lifeless as the Master Emerald was a moment ago.

A rage-filled yell echoed throughout the landscape.

* * *

A groggy groan emitted from a rousing Mobian splayed out on a bed of colorful flowers. Heavy eyelids blinked open, glazed over sapphires slowly focusing on the swaying leaves above him that projected their moving shadows on the waking one's face. He carefully pushed himself up in a sitting position, rubbing the back of his head and cringing when accidentally putting pressure on a bruise there.

What happened? He remember falling and colliding with something before he could get his namesakes to work… Tails, lowering his hand, scanned the forest area he had woken up in, anxiety covering him like a blanket when he realized that he was alone. His rate of respiration increased until he was nearly hyperventilating, "…A-Amy?" he stuttered out, looking for the familiar pink hedgehog he called his sister, "Amy?!" When there was no answer, from the pinkette or any of the other Mobians he was supposed to be with, Tails wrapped his furry appendages around himself.

He began to tremble, terrified of being alone. He was supposed to be with his friends, with _Amy_ , on the ARK in space and neither of those things happened. Tails was by himself in the middle of a forest that had somehow survived the abyss that supposedly had sucked everything up. The kit more than happy to be alive, but…he didn't feel safe. He felt vulnerable without someone there to protect him. More than usual because of what happened with Cream and Shadow… Biting his quivering lip, the fox curled more into himself, not knowing what to do.

A shocked gasp then escaped his lips when his stomach gave a lurch when he suddenly felt himself freefalling. Tails quickly looked down to the ground he was still attached to and swiftly came to the conclusion that it wasn't him that was falling but the _earth he was on._ Tails let out a cry before getting up on his feet and rotating his namesakes. He was hovering in the air now, watching in fright as the land that was supposed to be stagnant and dependable fell away from him.

Tails wrung his hands shaking hands together when he felt the leaves he was gazing at previously grazing his body before continuing down at the freefalling path. The yellow Mobian blinked at the sudden increase of light. When he got used to it, his mouth formed a perfect 'o' at the new sight. He apparently was on a _floating_ island _._ His mind easily supplied that it was Angel Island, but that was it. Not why was he here and not why no one else was.

That mental path was then put on hold when Tails saw the lowering concrete tower (which he guessed was the Master Emerald shrine. He had never actually been _up_ here before) that was holding a dull Master Emerald. Tails never knew it could ever be anything but bright and glowing; that's what he'd read in books about the history of the jewel in his free time.

Was that why the whole isle was plummeting?

Then Tails saw something red moving by the shrine, flying over to get beside the ME. "Is that…" the kit's heart gave a joyful leap, "K-Knuckles?" He wasn't alone! The kit just observed from afar until he noticed that the landmass below him had stopped freefalling. Taking a calming breath, Tails hovered over in the echidna's direction, clearing all of the towering trees. He almost reached the temple when he faltered, hearing the angry yell coming from the other Mobian.

Not used to the echidna being so irate, Tails came to a landing at the bottom of the concrete stairs, glancing up at the top with his namesakes nervously swishing behind him. "Maybe I should wait a bit…"

"WHO'S DOWN THERE?" Tails jumped a little at that shout. How did the echidna hear him? "DOCTOR, I SWEAR TO CHAOS IF IT'S YOU, I WILL – Tails?" Startled sapphires zeroed in on the red mammal on top of the stone shrine, looking down questioningly down at him. The echidna then began making his way down to where the fox was, "What are you doing here?"

Tails subtly shrunk under the fiery gaze he was held under. He had never seen that with Knuckles before, "U-Um…W-Well I w-was…"

"Never mind that," Knuckles cut him off, clearly still indignant about something, "You saw what just happened right?"

Tails gave a measly nod.

The echidna looked down at the dull blue Chaos emerald in his occupied hand, tightly clenching the other one. Tails' inwardly gasped at the condition of the held gem. The same thing happened to the one Penumbra had before they teleported! "This one is affected now, and I'm willing to bet anything that the rest of the emeralds are like it," the red Mobian growled low in his throat and Tails resisted the urge to take a step back, "The doctor is behind this, I'm sure."

Before the kit could ask _how_ exactly Eggman could be the cause of this when he was left behind to face the void, Knuckles gave him a determined look that was somewhat intimidating, "Take me to your plane Tails. We're going to White Acropolis."

Wait what? The fox wasn't used to the echidna being ready for action; usually he wanted anything but. Tails glanced over to a fluttering butterfly to his left, "I-I never th-thought that you c-cared so much about the M-Master Emerald, K-Knuckles…"

"What do you mean?" the kit flinched at the question barked at him, "I'm up here day in and day out Tails. Where have you been for, I don't know, the last few _years?_ "

Tails winced at the harsh tone and his ears flattened themselves against his head, "I-I'm s-sorry…" he squeaked barely above a whisper.

At that, Knuckles looked at Tails, actually _looked_ at him. There was something off about the kit. His body language, voice, and even expression. If the echidna didn't know any better, it seemed like the cub was _scared_ of him. Some of the fire drained from his eyes, calming down some, "Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you Tails. It's just that I'm so _tired_ of Eggman messing with our lives."

Tails didn't know what was going on anymore, so he just said, "I-I get it…"

Knuckles took a deep breath, "We need to leave now though Tails. The doctor is in White Acropolis and I _know_ it. He's doing something up there that's interfering with the chaos energy."

The vulpine fiddled with one of his tails, glancing away again, "O-Okay, but um…I d-didn't get up here…by p-plane."

"You didn't? Then how did you get up here?" Knuckles questioned and Tails wondered if he was suffering from some kind of amnesia. That was the only explanation, "You flew by _yourself_ all this way?"

"No… I-I just woke uph-here…"

"Just woke up?" Knuckles blinked in surprise before a thoughtful frown marred his face, "Tails...what happened before you woke up here?"

The kit twirled his fingers shyly, "I got t-teleported here…via C-Chaos Control…"

"Chaos Control?" the echidna repeated the other again, "Who sent you here?" It couldn't have been Shadow. He knew that the hedgehog was awake because of bat girl, but Shadow couldn't be at one hundred percent yet. And plus, the red Chaos emerald the lifeform had wasn't working.

Tails was completely positive that the other had amnesia. The echidna was supposed to know that Penumbra brought _all_ of them here, "P-Penumbra."

"Who is that? And why did this 'Penumbra' send you here?"

"Shadow's dimensional t-twin…he did it to teleport us away from the growing d-darkness…"

It was silent for a moment as Knuckles just stared with a blank expression on his face. He then rose a hand to the kit's forehead, brow furrowing, "You don't feel sick… You're clearly delusional though." The echidna stepped to the side and immediately saw the prominent bruise on Tails' head, "Maybe a concussion?" he asked himself. _Something happened to Tails, and the Chaos emerald was drained of its energy. It can't be a coincidence._

"White Acropolis is going to have to wait," Knuckles said as he took a step back, not all too happy about it. He eyed the confused Tails in front of him, "Do you remember where Sonic is?" the echidna wasn't ready for the violent flinch at the sound of the blue hero's name. When the kit shook his head adamantly, looking slightly worried, Knuckles' concern level skyrocketed, "Okay…" _What do I do know? Sonic could literally be anywhere, suffering the same mysterious fate. Ugh…The first good place to look is the hedgehog's home, if he's not there, then Station Square._

The guardian, knowing that the Master Emerald would be fine because the doctor was playing in the snow and Rouge was working, began to jog away from the shrine, "Let's go Tails."

The kit stared after him for a moment before following the older Mobian, namesakes spinning to provide lift, "Wh-Where are we going?"

"To find Sonic."

"D-Do we have to?"

Knuckles peered back over his shoulder, his shock not noticeable in his expression. When had Tails ever wanted to be _away_ from that hedgehog that he idolized so much? "So I can show him this Chaos emerald and to figure out what happened to you."

It unsettled the echidna at how scared the kit trailing him looked.

* * *

There was a heavy silence that settled over the hedgehog/fox duo with the new bit of information thrown at them. Tails was working away at the computer, pulling up multiple pictures and documents, muttering to himself. Sonic was just staring at the vials of blood, wondering what kind of stuff Eggman's been up to. The fact that the trio they buried weren't clones didn't settle right in his stomach. It was mostly because of the unknown factor.

His ears perked when the doorbell went off in the main house, "I'll get that," he said to Tails even though it didn't seem like his bro even heard him. Sonic zipped back through the open door and into the living room, slowing down to a stop at the front door after turning off the music. The speedster unlocked and opened it, not expecting Knuckles to be standing there, "How's it goin' Knux? Had to take a break from babysittin' that rock?"

"Hardly," the echidna grunted, eyeing the hedgehog suspiciously, "I doubt you'd know, but a couple of problems have popped up."

"Problems? What are you-" Sonic cut himself off when an energy-less Chaos emerald was shoved into his hands, "This one too?!" the hedgehog gaped, not believing what was happening. What was going on here?

"Yeah, and I have a very strong suspicion that Eggman is the cause of that and Angel Island almost falling out of the sky," Sonic's grip increased around the gem. _Eggy's sure have been busy in the last few days, huh?_ "And the other problem is, well, it looks like _you_ haven't been missing a specific someone."

Sonic cocked his head at his red friend, "What's that supposed to mean?" Knuckles stepped to the side and gestured behind him. The hero's jaw dropped to the floor at the sight of a yellow fox that was _identical_ to Tails hiding behind the sturdy echidna.

"Didn't know that you lost him?" Knuckles commented, raising a brow at the hedgehog's flabbergasted state.

Sonic rubbed his eyes multiple times, questioning the contents of his breakfast earlier that morning. When the mirror image of Tails was _still there_ , he swallowed thickly, "I didn't…know he was missing," before Knuckles could ask what in the hell he was talking about, Sonic called back into the house, "Um Tails? Can you put what you're doing on hold? You're needed out here, like _now_!"

Knuckles crossed his arms, wondering if Sonic had something wrong with him – other than the usual – as well, "And _who_ are you talking to?" His question was then answered when _another_ Tails, rather grumpily, rounded the corner in the home. Knuckles was frozen, "Oh."

"Now what could be _so_ important that it tops what we just…" All words died on Tails' tongue as he spotted a _second_ him standing right there in the doorway, slightly blocked by an echidna who couldn't take his eyes of the kit now beside Sonic. The scene would be somewhat comical to a third party looking in; the one side staring bewilderedly at the other, and vice versa.

They stood like that for a while before Knuckles broke the silence, "So if that's Tails, then who…" he pointed at the yellow cub behind him who was shaking in his boots, seeming to be the most shocked one there, "…is this?"

The timid Tails couldn't believe it. There was another him, a more take-charge Knuckles (he _knew_ that something was weird), and there was a Sonic whose gaze was making him highly uncomfortable – even though it was more caused by past experiences than the actual stare. What world did Penumbra send him to? He might be alone after all…

The shaking kit couldn't prevent the tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

Sonic saw this and reached out, "Hey bud, uh, are you alright?" however, he pulled back his hand when the action made the other fox cower. The hero then glanced over to his little bro, "Tails…do you think…?"

The addressed nodded, "It has to be."

"What are you two talking about?" Knuckles asked, not liking being out of the loop, especially with something like this.

Sonic and Tails shared a look, "I mean, he hasn't tried to attack us yet, and I bet all of us'll have no problem overpowering him," the former said with a shrug.

"Okay," the kit breathed out before smiling at his other self, trying to look as welcoming as possible, "Uh…Do you want to come inside with us? I can tell you're as confused as we are. Maybe together we can get some answers?"

The Tails he was talking to had _no_ intention of going in that house. If he did, then he had nowhere to go if they (Sonic) decided to attack him. It didn't matter if it seemed like they weren't going to do anything unless he did; he didn't want to take any chances.

Seeing the hesitation, Sonic fabricated the most charming grin he could, "Oh c'mon! We don't bite!" the fox outside begged to differ, "We just want to have a friendly convo and see what's going on around here," the newest vulpine still wasn't budging, "Hm, would you come in if we said we had cookies?"

Tails blinked up at his big bro, "But we don't-"

Sonic nudged him and muttered out of the corner of his mouth, " _He_ doesn't know that!"

Knuckles snorted in amusement, "Well he does now," he then schooled his face into a scowl, turning to the fox that had been trailing him, "Here's the deal, either you come inside and convince us that you aren't working with Eggman, or you will be in for a world of pain," the echidna held up his namesakes, watching the other eye them nervously, "Which one will it be?"

The choice was a no-brainer for him. Tails wiped away some of the dampness and sniffed, "I…I'll g-go inside…"

The group of three nodded to each other before Sonic and Tails beckoned the second fox inside, Knuckles bringing up the rear.

"Sit wherever you like!" the hedgehog gestured to the living room, addressing both Knuckles and the near silent fox cub. Once the latter stiffly sat in a chair that was on the far side of the room, Sonic turned to Tails and lowered his voice, "Egghead sure did a shoddy job in cloning ya."

"He's not a clone," Tails whispered back, reminding the hero of the tests he had just ran.

"You positive?"

"He most likely isn't…" he responded as he plopped down on the sofa beside Knuckles who was searching the odd-one-out for any signs of evilness. Sonic leaned on the back of the couch, arms folded loosely on top of it, "So…" seeing that the other him wasn't _near_ comfortable enough to speak again, Tails turned to Knuckles, "How'd he find you? Or you him?"

"Well, after an energy flux," the guardian gestured to the gem in Sonic's hand, said hedgehog shaking it at Tails, "which unfortunately caused that, I sensed someone close by. He was just standing there at the beginning of the shrine."

"You know how he got up there?"

Knuckles glanced over at Sonic, "Some nonsense about someone named Penumbra Chaos Controlling him up."

Both Tails and Sonic sucked in a sharp breath, "Did you say Penumbra?!"

"Wait, this Penumbra is a real _person_?"

The kit nodded, "Yeah! I haven't told you yet, I had to pick Espio up from Vanilla's because he had to go the hospital. He looked _bad_ Knuckles; you should've seen his eye. He said that what attacked him is basically a clone of Shadow, named Penumbra! Eggman most likely made him to search for the Chaos emeralds."

Knuckles _knew_ that the doctor wasn't up to anything good. Wanting to connect the dots, the guardian turned toward the uncomfortable Tails sitting in the chair. He attempted to get rid of the frown on his face; he didn't know how successful he was, "Are you friends with this Penumbra?"

Tails was terrified to answer. He couldn't lie, they'd know immediately and he'd be in hot water, but if he told the truth, he'd be put in a group with Eggman, who he _definitely_ hadn't been working with. The kit needed to be truthful however, to avoid a potential fight and to right their wrong information about Penumbra (who was in this world too. That meant that Amy was somewhere as well, to his relief).

Calming himself down, he nodded, "I-I am, but he i-isn't a bad g-guy…"

Sonic tilted his head, "Really? You gotta explain that one bud," the trio had grown tense at the other's affirmation.

Tails stared over at the nearby wall, avoiding those piercing green emeralds at all costs, "T-The Espio you t-took to the hospital is the v-villain…Penumbra attacked him…to p-protect us…"

"So you're saying that you're not one of Eggman's pawns?" the couched Tails asked dubiously. The other him nodded his head.

"But what if that's what Eggman _wanted_ him to say!"

"Cool it Knux, don't lose it yet," Sonic chuckled before scratching his nose. It wasn't hard to notice how the other kit was more nervous of him than of Tails or Knuckles, "So new Tails, let's say we're buying what you're selling, who is the 'us' that you're talkin' about?"

The fidgety vulpine mumbled, "…the r-rest of my friends."

"Your friends?" Tails questioned and his double nodded, "Do you know where they are?" the shake of a head was his answer, "So you say that Espio is bad and Penumbra is good…" _I need to know if there's any connect between him and the Cream Sonic found in the field,_ "Are one of your friends named Cream, a bunny with a blue tie around her ears?"

The Tails in the chair gulped, reliving the memories of the bunny covered in her own blood, "Y-Yeah. She's not…She's not…"

The little brother locked gazes with Sonic, "Alive?" the kit finished. Tails nodded once again.

"Why is that important?" Knuckles placed his cheek in his hand.

"I found fakes of Cream, Vanilla, and Cheese while I was out on a run. They weren't walkin' around. Tails took samples of their blood and compared them to the real ones. Apparently, the fakes weren't clones."

"What were they then?"

"That was exactly my question!"

The more comfortable young genius then cut them off, asking his twin one more question, "You say that you're not working with Eggman, so where did you come from?"

"P-Penumbra-"

Sonic waved him off, "We know how, but from _where_? Space, deep sea, desert, those types of answers."

"S-Station Square."

Tails turned to Sonic and Knuckles, "It may sound farfetched because it happened with a mere Chaos Control, but I'm thinking dimensional travel."

"I agree," the echidna deadpanned, "It does sound farfetched."

"I mean, we can't _exactly_ rule it out…" Sonic tapped his fingers, giving the more quiet Tails a fleeting glance, "Can't we test him first? Like what you did with Vanilla and Cream? So we know for sure that he isn't your exact copy."

"Right, I can do that," Tails jumped off the couch and turned to the other fox, jabbing a thumb over to the door to the garage, "Do you mind if I take some of your blood? It's not like we don't trust you, but better safe than sorry, you understand right?"

Wary sapphires searched for any malcontent before the doppelganger slid out of the chair and shuffled behind Tails, keeping an eye on Sonic as the duo left the room.

"I don't like this."

"You also don't like when someone so much breathes on that precious rock of yours," Sonic rolled his eyes, jumping over the back of the sofa to take Tails' spot. He tossed the dim Chaos emerald back and forth, "It kinda makes sense if you think about it. If he, along with the friends he claims he has, are from another dimension, then they wouldn't be clones. They'd be variants, like we found out fake Cream was to Cream."

"…I still don't like this."

Sonic chuckled, "What's got your dreads in a knot Knucklehead?"

The guardian punched him in the shoulder not-so-playfully at the nickname, "Clones would be easier to deal with."

The blue hero rubbed the sore spot, making a mental note to bring up a permanent marker the next time he went up to the island. He wondered what the Master Emerald would look like with a giant pile of poo drawn on it, "Deal with? You mean like-"

"Getting rid of them, yeah," Knuckles sighed out, glancing up at the ceiling, "Born and raised beings are a different thing. Sending them back is going to be a hassle."

"What's so bad about them staying here? Besides having to look at two of you, I mean," Sonic dodged another swipe with a cheeky grin.

"We don't know if another me is even _here_ ," Knuckles growled, "What I'm worried about is what could happen with them running around. They aren't supposed to be in this world; they could easily disrupt it," he pointedly glanced at the jewel Sonic was handling.

The azure hedgehog spun it on a single finger, not bothered the slightest about their situation, "Nah, I think Eggy's the cause of this here. In case you don't know, he _has_ been every time it's happened," Sonic watched his warped reflection in the gem as it went around, "The rock show you anythin'?"

"Eggman messing with the emeralds and the doubles showing up don't have to be mutually exclusive, you know. He could've transferred them here, which could have caused the-" Knuckles narrowed his eyes when the hedgehog rolled his own. Being paranoid was the right thing in this situation, Sonic was in the wrong here. But there was _no_ way that the guardian would be able to pound that in the speedster's stubborn brain. So instead, Knuckles huffed indignantly and regarded the question asked, "The _Master Emerald_ showed me White Acropolis, and it wouldn't have if it was still abandoned."

"Woohoo! A trip to the mountains!" Sonic smirked while fist-pumping, "Just when I think things were gettin' boring around here!"

Knuckles smirked for a different reason, "It'll only be entertaining to me when I pound Eggman's face in." _And we get to find out if Tails' little clone is telling the truth._

It was silent in the room for a moment until another thought entered the guardian's mind, "Hey, _if_ all of this dimension jumping is true, then what about the stuff he said about Espio? What do we do about that?"

"Oh yeah…" Sonic trailed off, "Forgot about him. Well, if he really is a bad guy, he'd be stuck in his white, sterile, and smelly jail cell for a while, at least until nightfall. I'm sure they gave him the heavy meds. We'll have plenty of time to figure out what's up and what's down by then."

"…What do you have against hospitals?"

* * *

"T-Tails?"

The kit spoken to, who was sitting at his computer watching as the loading bar slowly filled its container, was caught off guard when his own voice called his name. It was something to get used to. He whirled around in his swivel chair, focusing on his mirror image that was playing with one of his namesakes, "Yeah?" Tails responded, actually interested with whatever the other had to say, especially if the twin had been the one to initiate the conversation, "What is it?"

"W-Where is C-Cream now?"

Tails scratched his cheek, wondering how he should phrase his answer. But then a voice in the back of his head brought up the fact that he shouldn't care how the other felt if the kit before him indeed _was_ something conjured up by Eggman. Tails blocked that thought, giving his twin the benefit of the doubt. The idea of dimensional doubles wasn't that farfetched; he'd dealt with something similar before, interacting with a younger version of himself.

"We buried her where Sonic found her. I'm sorry about-"

"Oh…o-okay…" the double slowly nodded and wiped his eyes. Tails felt a pang of empathy. The other kit then opened his mouth again, but closed it after a moment of thought. Tails was too curious to let that slide.

"What is it?"

"D-Does…" the quiet one suddenly found the floor very interesting, "Does S-Sonic ever…h-hit you?"

"Hit me?" To say that Tails was shocked was an understatement. He was petrified, his brain immediately figuring out why the other would ask that question. What…What world was his doppelganger _from?_ Tails couldn't imagine Sonic doing _anything_ like that to him for any reason. _So it seems like there's another Sonic running around somewhere, whether that's good or bad is debatable._

"No…No he hasn't," Tails gave a small smile, "He doesn't lay a hand on a living person unless they really _really_ deserve it, like if they were destroying his favorite chilidog stand," he chuckled, but cut it short when he received an odd look, "What I'm trying to say is that I think Sonic would rather chop off his own hand than intentionally hurt me."

The standing Tails' eyes widened when he realized that those words sounded very familiar. He searched his brain until the reason why showed its head.

" _And most importantly, he doesn't hurt any living thing without a very good reason."_

Shadow's voice echoed around in his mind and Tails was suddenly stock-still, going over what he had recently seen. Sonic wasn't constantly bullying him, the hedgehog and the other Tails seemed to be _great_ friends, Knuckles was more hotheaded than what the kit was used to, and…

Tails glanced over at the formidable aircraft in the same room he was in.

…his mirror image had a plane.

The puzzle pieces fit together perfectly. Penumbra hadn't teleported them to just another world; he had taken them to _Shadow's._ Did the hedgehog's friends even know that he was…dead?

Tails blinked when a hand was waved in front of his face.

"Hey, you kinda zoned out there. Are you okay?" his double asked, still smiling.

Looking at that curious yet content face, Tails couldn't do it. Someone else would have to; someone else would have to make the smile go away.

"I-I'm fine."

The sitting Tails opened his mouth to reply, but then a ding that sounded on his computer attracted his attention. He spun back around and scanned the results of the blood, nodding to himself when his guess was correct. The Tails behind him wasn't a clone. He was a twin, dimensional or otherwise.

Tails hopped out of his seat and clasped his hands together with a grin, facing the other occupant of the garage, "Your story checks out!"

The twin couldn't help but respond with a tiny grin of his own.

* * *

 _Finally lunchtime,_ Rouge inwardly cheered as her surroundings shifted from an urban theme to more of a beach one, concrete melting into many grains of sand. The bat hummed in satisfaction when she breathed in the soothing sea breeze, flying her way into Emerald Coast. The crystal clear waters peacefully lapped at the heated yellow sand, the warmth of it all unwinding the most uptight of people. Because of it being early in the afternoon, the vacation spot was nearly empty.

Bag filled with various fruits clasped in hand, the GUN agent swooped down to an available beach chair with a small stand and striped umbrella to the side of it. She laid down on her back, stretching out some of her tense muscles, and placed her lunch beside her. Rouge angled the colorful umbrella over her face and sighed contently. She reached over, grabbed a juicy strawberry, and plopped it into her mouth.

"I could definitely get used to this," she said to the waves rolling over the sand not ten yards in front of her. Her turquoise eyes slid closed as she took a deep breath, now chewing on a sweet cherry. Unfortunately, she had only forty-five minutes to enjoy this luxury before she had to go back to the commands, the missions, and the paperwork. It was even worse now because Shadow was out of commission. This amount of stress should decrease when he returned to work.

Not that she was wanting for him to hurry and get out of the hospital, no, if anything, Rouge believed that he should stay there until he felt completely better. But knowing that stubborn hedgehog, she knew that he would probably make up any excuse to be released early. He really needed to take one out of Blue's book and learn to take a breather once in a while.

The albino bat was then interrupted out of her thoughts by loud splashing going on in front of her. She shook her head slightly in exasperation. _Just don't splash the goods._ Rouge bit into an apple and reveled in its slightly sour taste. She was about to take another one when the splashing stopped and heavy footsteps made their way toward her. They stopped at the edge of her chair and she opened her eyes, mouth twisted downwards in annoyance as she wondered who would bother her while she was trying to relax.

The green fruit in her hand fell to the sand below as she stared down the barrel of a cannon.

Unfortunately, lunchtime was over.

* * *

 **So who did Rouge meet at the beach? ;)**

 **Next time…an important connection is made!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer- I own some Sonic games! Does that count? No? Okay…back to the corner I go…**

 **Chapter 4- Game of tag**

"Omega?" Rouge managed out in a hopefully calm and collected voice; she had a feeling that it wasn't either one of those though. The bat tried to move her head away from the threatening opening of the live cannon – she heard the high-pitched hum coming from the robotic arm that rose all of her mental red flags – but the mech was persistent, not letting the not-so-relaxed-anymore bat out of the danger zone.

Less than appreciative that this new development was disrupting her peace and quiet (along with her heart rate), the agent attempted to push the arm out of her face with her gloved hand, stopping when that didn't change a thing. Blue-green eyes then forcefully tore themselves from the object demanding all of their attention to the body behind it. They took in the mechanic torso that the arm belonged to, Rouge more than a little shocked at the condition the dripping wet robot was in. There were multiple holes in him – how he didn't short-circuit in the water, she had no idea – and one of his arms were completely _gone_ , its wires exposed and dangling.

Which was strange, because she had _just_ seen the mech in standby mode when she had left GUN. It was near impossible for Omega to be this damaged this quickly, and thrown into the ocean no less.

Oh, and the cannon thing was throwing her mind for a loop as well.

"Now who gave you the crazy idea to interrupt someone while they're trying to tan?" Rouge teased with somewhat twitching smirk. Being disintegrated into ashes wasn't something on her to-do list, and she wasn't too pleased that adding it could very well be an option. "And while they're having a rather delicious lunch? Now that's just rud-"

The bat's words promptly cut off when those glowing red eyes flashed dangerously, "IT DOES NOT MATTER WHAT DISGUISE YOU USE. I WILL COMPLETE MY MISSION, AND THAT INCLUDES YOUR INSIDES BEING TURNED INTO UNIDENTIFIABLE ASHES."

Now that the robot was holding the metaphorical pen right over the metaphorical checkbox next to the line 'Turn bat into flambé' on the metaphorical list (right under 'Drip _horrid_ salt water all over her designer boots'), Rouge figured that it was best to put some distance between her and the one-track minded bot in front of her.

"As much I would _love_ to help you out with that, sugar, I've got a few errands to run," One, to GUN so she could check whether the mech before her was her _real_ teammate. Two, to trash this bot when she figured out that it wasn't. And three, to find the doctor to teach him a lesson about taking away a woman's well-earned free time.

"YOU WILL BE GOING NOWHERE BECAUSE YOU WILL BE ERASED FROM EXISTENCE," The red and black machine leaned forward and a cold sweat formed on Rouge's brow, "AND YOUR VISUAL OPERATIONS MUST BE MALFUNCTIONAL. I AM THE FURTHEST THING FROM A SUBSTANCE THAT YOU ORGANICS USE TO SWEETEN THE NOURISHMENT YOU INGEST."

Before the agent could explain what a pet name was, her hypersensitive ears picked up on the increasing pitch of the hum inside the cannon. She swiftly took to the skies with a couple beats of her dependable wings, glancing down only to see her beach chair (and umbrella and lunch) turned into grey ash that mixed in with the formerly pure golden sand below.

When those red eyes almost immediately found hers again, there was a pang of worry in her stomach as she took off in a gust of wind back into Station Square. She would tear the robot apart if she had too, but that was the last thing she wanted to happen especially if it was indeed her teammate and not some murder-happy copy Eggman had conjured up in his quiet absence.

"YOU WILL NOT GET AWAY."

Rouge gasped when the monotone voice came from right behind her. She glanced back and then lowered her altitude as fast as she could, a multitude of bullets raining right over her head. Getting deeper inside the lively city, the agent saw pedestrians down below pointing up at her and her assailant, some thinking ahead and running into the nearest shops.

When she heard the machine gun, the albino bat immediately made a hard right, ducking into a lesser used alleyway that still lead in the direction of where she worked. Rouge then cried out in shock when intensely hot flames licked at her left side, barely escaping a rather smoky fate. She reached up and frowned when she could easily pull out singled white hairs.

After mourning for a millisecond, revenge and determination fueled her system, causing her to turn around in midair and calling out a, "Drill kick!" She wasn't planning to give her all; she just wanted the other to be disoriented long enough for her to make a getaway and confirm her doctor-related suspicions.

Too bad her plan didn't work out.

As soon as she made contact with Omega's metallic shoulder, she regretted it. The pain was equivalent of someone else copying _her_ move and aiming it right at her ankle. The bat hissed under her breath when she quickly put space between her and the mecha to avoid being snatched, noticing that her right foot was _definitely_ bent at the wrong angle.

 _Now that's no way to win a fight,_ she thought sourly before refocusing on her adversary, seeing that no damage had been taken from her kick, _What? This…This_ _ **can't**_ _be Omega. Even though I didn't put much power into my kick, it should've left a dent! What was the doctor pumping into his robots now? Nothing good is my best guess._

Figuring that fighting was no good unless Rouge wanted a _second_ twisted ankle, she danced around a blue beam shot from the arm cannon before whirling back around and flying as fast as her wings could carry her. She weaved through the narrow streets, whizzing by the occasional citizen that did nothing but watch a panting bat try to escape from the robot behind her. In the back of Rouge's mind, she thought that it was weird that Omega wasn't going for anyone else but her. She wasn't wishing any harm to any innocent, but what did she have to _do_ around here to catch a break?

"JUST GIVE UP. YOUR DEMISE IS INEVITABLE."

"If anyone's giving up, it's you Omega!" Rouge called back, quickly turning a corner and avoiding white-hot flames, "Just turn around and tell Eggman that you failed; trust me, the big oaf is used to it. He wouldn't care much."

"EGGMAN DID NOT ASSIGN ME THIS MISSION. I AM FOLLOWING THE ORDERS OF A MORE AUTHORITATIVE BEING. YOU SHOULD BE COGNIZANT OF THIS. PERHAPS THIS DISGUISE OF YOURS CHANGED MORE THAN YOUR PHYSICAL APPEARANCE. YOUR MENTAL PROCESSING HAS BEEN AFFECTED NEGATIVELY AS WELL."

Rouge furrowed her brow, "…More authoritative being? Who…?" then the rest of what the mech said was processed, and the bat nearly fell out of the air in outrage, "What do you mean 'negatively _as well'_? I have no idea what disguise you think I have on, but I have you know that I spend _precious_ time in the mornings to make sure that I look _perfe_ – Ahh!"

The albino GUN agent tried to stop, swerve, duck under, do _something_ to avoid the robot now right in front of her, having sped up to speeds she didn't think he could reach and stopping right in her flight path. But she was too close and at the velocity she was going, the collision couldn't be avoided.

Her body made hard contact with the unyielding metal and her face twisted up in a wince at the pain reverberating throughout her system. Turquoise eyes then flew open when a stiff hand wrapped around her neck, gloved hands instinctively rising to attempt to claw the limb away.

She wasn't getting any much needed oxygen, and the only sounds that came out of her mouth were raspy gasps and wheezes. Her legs were fruitlessly kicking at Omega's midsection, but she might as well be hitting him with a rolled up newspaper. Rouge was staring into the other's face as her flailing became weaker, furious that her attacker was wearing her innocent teammate's face. It…It was the last thing she would ever see. Those glowing red eyes that looked so familiar, but so different at the same time.

"LEAVE HER ALONE YOU BRUTE!"

Rouge didn't have time to react to the new voice before her whole body was jolted to the side, careening through the air until she crashed into the side of a building. The pain spread to her back now, however, she noticed that the grip around her neck wasn't has strong. Not wasting a second, she pried the mechanical fingers away and flew toward the owner of the voice, happier than she had been in her entire life to see the hedgehog.

"You came at the right time Pinky," Rouge gave a relieved smile as she rubbed her neck gingerly, "any later and I would've-"

"Are you sure that you're alright though Rouge?" Green eyes worriedly searched for more injuries, their owner taking a (highly unnecessary) step forward, "He was holding you really tight and I saw him shoot at you back out in the open and-"

"I'm fine Amy, really," the bat floated away from the other a bit, trying to get her personal space back. The pinkette didn't follow her; she still was looking for any more blatant injuries. Rouge angled herself so the other wouldn't see her singed hairs, "That was a pretty nice hammer throw," the young hedgehog beamed, "But give me a warning next time hon, so I know when I'm going to crash into a building."

Before Amy could respond with a snappy 'I _thought_ my voice was a good enough warning', there was movement from the building the bat came from. Both of the girls turned their attention to Omega peeling himself from the side of the structure. His opticals were focused solely on Amy, "ANOTHER TARGET SIGHTED. PREPARE TO PERISH AS WELL."

"What? Another target? He's after the _both_ of us now?" Rouge muttered incredulously.

"As if!" Amy shouted back at their opponent, producing another piko-piko from the (aptly named) hammerspace that always seemed to provide an unlimited amount of the pinkette's favorite weapon. Amy got into a ready stance, determined to take the bot down, "You made me drop my shopping bags to chase after you, and now they're probably stolen! You are _so_ going down!"

Before the hedgehog could run toward the mech (and her doom), Rouge grabbed the handle of her weapon, causing her to glance back at the bat in curiosity. The agent shook her head, "No offense, but we're gonna need more firepower than that sugar."

Amy frowned, "But-"

The bat then grasped the pink one's arm and briskly flew up, nearly being hit by speeding bullets, "We need to get to GUN's base, but to do that, we need to distract him. Think you can throw that hammer again?"

Amy pursed her lips before nodding, and Rouge was immensely glad that the hedgehog had done so without arguing. Steadying herself in midair, the agent watched as the robot raced toward them, flamethrower now being its choice of weapon. Before he could get close enough to have them in range, Amy reared back her free arm and then hurled her hammer as hard as she could, causing Omega to be sent backwards again, skidding along the ground. However, like earlier, no actual damage was given.

But Rouge didn't care at the moment, she had her window of opportunity, and she jumped right through it.

The albino Mobian, with a pink hedgehog in tow, sped out of the ally and back into busier parts of Station Square, hoping that the crowds and commotion would keep Omega from finding them again.

"So why is he so angry? What did you do to him?"

Rouge was mildly affronted, but she squashed down the feeling; Amy didn't know any information, "I didn't do anything to him. He's not even Omega, or rather, the Omega that _I_ know."

Amy glanced up at her, confused, "But he looks like him and sounds like him, how is he _not_ him?"

"I just know," the bat replied instead of the 'I _refuse_ to believe that he is' that was on the tip of her tongue.

"Hm…oookaayy…" Amy drawled out, like she didn't know whether to trust her eyes or her friend more, "Well, Omega or not, what he did back there was nowhere near good! He should get punished either way!"

The sides of Rouge's mouth twitched, "Oh honey, that imposter is going to be more than just punished _._ "

The conversation died off then, Amy was enjoying the ride and Rouge was lost in her thoughts, until the bat's job was in sight. She swopped down in front of the entrance, depositing Amy on the ground. Rouge, still flying to not hurt her ankle any further, pushed open the doors and immediately whipped her head to the object standing in the far corner of the room. She let out a sigh in relief. _I was right._

Rouge pointed over there while glancing over at Amy who was walking in behind her, "Now _that_ is Omega, not that bucket of bolts out there somewhere."

Amy put her hands on her hips, "So…who made that one who almost killed you? Eggman?"

"That would've been my first guess too, but," Rouge crossed her arms, a faint frown marring her face, "I don't know if that's the case this time."

"What? Do we know any _other_ robot crazed scientists?

"…Just because we don't know of them doesn't mean that they aren't out there," leaving that statement to hang in the air, Rouge flew deeper into the base, pinkette at her heels. She passed fellow co-workers who were giving her odd looks either because 1) Rouge not going on her lunch break practically meant that the world was ending, or 2) a non-member of the organization visiting the base was pretty rare to see (excluding those of Team Sonic). Rouge supposed that it was a little bit of both.

They covered a lot of ground quickly, making it to the opposite end of the base in a fraction of the time it would usually take. Rouge knocked harshly on the Commander's door, barely waiting for the 'come in' before throwing said object open. The Commander, believe it or not, actually jumped a bit at the unexpected noise.

He rose an eyebrow, "Rouge? Why-"

"We have a robot problem," she interrupted him, not caring about any possible consequences because the Commander himself wouldn't care after she filled him in. She got to explaining, "Eggman, or someone else, built a replica of Omega. He's out in Station Square; strangely enough, he is only interested in targeting me and Pinky behind me," Amy was playing with one of her quills, watching the human's reactions, "He hasn't made a move to hurt anyone else. Not yet, anyway."

There was a long, pensive silence, then:

"And what is your point of coming here?"

Rouge should've known that this would not go smoothly, "Extra power is needed Commander. I tried to attack him and well," she gestured to her twisted ankle, "It was like I hadn't hit him at all, really. And plus, _he's a copy of Omega,_ " Now Rouge was doing what she did best, manipulating, "A stronger one at that. Don't you want to-"

"You have a point. I'll send out a squad immediately," the Commander swiftly walked out of the room, radioing several members of the base. He missed Rouge rolling her eyes, "You two stay in the base," he shouted back, "No need for unnecessary casualties."

"Are you dispatching Omega?" Rouge asked him.

"…No, we can't afford him being taken down."

Translation: Just in case we can't get this new powerful toy, we still want the old not-so-powerful toy to fall back on.

The agent shook her head slightly as the Commander walked out of sight. She rubbed her forehead and glanced down when her foot throbbed, the adrenaline wearing off, "Time to go to the infirmary…" Rouge turned around in the air and abruptly stopped at the look on Amy's face.

She did not look pleased.

There was yet another red and yellow hammer clutched tightly in her hands, her green eyes glaring at the spot outside of the room where the Commander disappeared. Rouge blinked in surprise when that angry expression was aimed at her, "Are we just going to listen to him? We should go out there too!"

Rouge blinked again before snickering, putting a hand on the pinkette's shoulder, "Let them handle it. I know you want to help out Pinky, but you staying here is better than you getting seriously hurt."

Amy pouted, "But _Sonic_ would go out there and fight anyway."

The agent inwardly groaned. She had been wondering how long it would take for that speedy hedgehog to be brought up, "That's true, Blue does whatever he wants to do, but how many times does he get hurt because of that?" Rouge smirked when green eyes widened, "If you went out there and got hurt, he would worry. Do you _want_ him to be sad?"

After a moment, the hedgehog slumped in defeat, hammer disappearing in a puff of smoke, "No…"

The bat's smirk widened, "Exactly. Now, you don't even have to stay _here_ , just don't go out there and fight, alright hon?"

Amy nodded, but she still didn't seem happy about it, "Fine, I'll stay out of GUN's way…"

Rouge patted her shoulder, "Attagirl!" The agent began to float past the pinkette, "I'm going to get my leg checked out. If you want, you can get some snacks from the breakroom."

Gloomy irises brightened, "Ooo! What kind of snacks?"

* * *

"So TT, want to tell us about your friends?"

Sonic directed his attention from the blurred landscape below to the newest and quietest member of their group who was sitting in the seat behind Tails. The four Mobians were riding in (and on) the Tornado, the two foxes safe in the provided seats with the echidna and hedgehog crouched on the plane's wings, too used to the feeling to fall off.

Getting Tails to agree to go to White Acropolis was easy; Sonic and Knuckles had brought it up and the fox said okay after getting the explanation. The kit's dimensional twin was a different matter. He was adamant about staying behind, actually frightened to go on an adventure, which Sonic was nowhere used to. However, the shy vulpine eventually caved when Tails talked to him and when Knuckles' suspicious glare had gotten to be too much for him. So after Tails cleaned up the backseat a bit – no one liked blood in their fur – the quartet had taken off in the direction of the 'abandoned' acropolis.

Sonic wanted to engage in some sort of conversation with the silent Mobian well because…it seemed like he was the only one who hadn't got to (that interrogation earlier didn't really count). Tails' twin talked to Tails a bit while the latter cleaned, and apparently, the timid fox had interacted with Knuckles before the guardian had gotten all paranoid. With Sonic, he avoided the hedgehog like the plague. The hero's little bro had enlightened him about the doppelganger's fear, and, being the good guy that he was, Sonic wanted to show that he wasn't a bad person.

So he started a conversation that the fox couldn't run away from.

"TT?" the wrong fox in the cockpit questioned, rapid winds whipping his yellow fringe, "Is that his nickname? What does it stand for?"

"And why did you give him one?" Knuckles added gruffly, obviously still iffy about this dimension thing.

Sonic gave them his signature grin, "Well I can't keep callin' him Tails can I? And since he's basically Tails' twin, TT stands for 'Twin Tails'," the speedster flashed his pearly whites over at the fourth member, "That's okay with you, right?"

The newly named TT ducked his head as soon as Sonic turned in this direction, nodding as he looked at his fidgeting feet. The hedgehog's grin faded when he saw the ghost of a frown marring the other's muzzle, "Hey look, if you don't like it-"

"It's a-alright…"

The interjection was so soft that Sonic almost didn't hear it over the rushing winds. The azure Mobian stared at the fox for another moment until it seemed like his gaze was seriously causing the kit distress. He looked like he was about to cry. Sonic quickly switched his focus to Knuckles, who was observing the vulpine with his brow furrowed. Slightly worried emeralds then met calculating violets. Knuckles just shrugged before deciding to watch the clouds at they passed by them.

"Let's just…talk about your friends okay?" Tails suggested after a tense moment. He glanced back at his twin and gave him a smile, "So we know who they are and what they're like?" Sonic's heart panged when TT gave Tails a shaky smile, sapphires watering. Sonic hated seeing Tails cry, and he guessed now that it went for all versions of him. But what could he do? Just being in the mere _presence_ of the hedgehog seemed to trigger something. This was going to take more time than he had originally thought.

"S-Sure um…" In the corner of his eye, Sonic saw him twiddle his thumbs, biting his lip. If Tails was like this in that dimension (if that wasn't all a lie. Sonic believed it for the most part, but you never knew), then any of the kit's friends could come as a total surprise. The hero was actually curious. "T-There's Amy…She took me in…P-Protected me from bullies," the quick glance over at Sonic was not missed by the hedgehog and echidna, "Basically my…surrogate s-sister…"

Sonic and Tails both shared a brief look, "…And you miss her right?" the latter asked, knowing that the two were separated and that, while he could be without Sonic for a few days, he figured that his doppelganger could barely go for a few hours.

TT solemnly nodded.

"Maybe we could try to find her after we get back? Knuckles?" Tails turned his head toward the red echidna, "Could we search Angel Island and the area around it for her? There could be a chance that she was around there and you two just totally missed her."

Knuckles sighed, "Yeah, we can search for her," he then cut his eyes toward TT, " _If_ all this he's saying is true."

"Oh come off it Knucklehead," Sonic smirked over at the guardian, "Once we find Eggy, I can rub in your face how much you were paranoid for no good reason, for a _long_ while," Before Knuckles could make a heated comeback, the blue Mobian relaxed his features and tried to give the most pleasant expression he could when he looked at the twin, "So, got any others you want to talk about?"

TT was still staring at the floor. He swallowed thickly at the voice that had caused him so much trauma, "Knuckles…" Said echidna perked up at the sound of his name, now aptly listening to the conversation. Apparently there _was_ another him somewhere in the world. "H-He's u-usually relaxed and doesn't take charge often… He d-doesn't care about the Master Emerald," TT shyly focused on the guardian, "T-That's why I said that to you…earlier…"

Knuckles nodded, "It makes sense, if I really have a twin as you say-"

"Knux! Say off the skepticism jeez!"

"-then it would've been easy to confuse me with the one you know," the echidna continued as if never interrupted, "But what kind of mindset does he even have? Not caring about the Master Emerald? If he doesn't take care of it, then who does?"

TT shrugged one shoulder, "H-Him not caring about it is the r-reason it was taken…"

"TAKEN?!"

Sonic chuckled along with his little bro, " _Now_ he believes it's real just because that rock was mentioned."

The second fox nodded at Knuckles, "Yeah, by E-Eggman…"

"Eggman?" Tails repeated, "Well at least he's the same. Is he in this world too? Please tell me he's not."

Sonic snickered to himself, "Two Eggmans would be twice the fun!"

"Only to you, hedgehog, only to you," Knuckles scoffed before turning his attention to the fox being questioned, "So is he?"

TT shook his head, "N-No…he…he d-died."

A shocked silence covered the group.

"Wow…" Sonic finally whistled out. He couldn't picture the man dead. Sure, the human was a little more than aggravating on a really bad day, but on a good one, he would provide Sonic an adventure. Time travel, deep space exploring, heck, that guy could think of any outrageous plan to try to take over the world. Him being gone would make life…boring. But was that a good or a bad thing? "Just…wow," he really couldn't come up with anymore words.

"…Who killed him?" Tails voiced, messing with some knobs and increasing the speed of the Tornado. Sonic and Knuckles squatted down further to accommodate for the change.

"The growing v-void…"

"A void…" Knuckles drawled out, gears turning in his mind, "Is that the same thing as that darkness you were telling me about before?" TT nodded, "What caused it?"

"I-I don't know…" the kit brushed his bangs out of his face, "It reached us w-when we were fighting Espio."

"And you said that he was a bad guy right?" Sonic asked and immediately regretted doing so when the little fox flinched in his seat as if slapped. It seemed like it was going to be a while before the other was used to him, "What's he like?" he added softly. And maybe afterwards he could get the kit to describe the other Sonic so he could right all of the wrongs his other self had done.

After calming down a bit, TT reluctantly began talking, "Um….He's s-smart and r-ruthless. A while ago, he caused Rogue to-"

"Rogue? You mean Rouge?" Tails corrected.

TT looked at him oddly before shaking his head, "No…Rogue. H-He's a bat."

Tails began chuckling under his breath when Knuckles slumped, "Just great… _another_ one."

But Sonic wasn't laughing. Rogue? That name sounded familiar, but Sonic couldn't exactly place where he had heard it before – Wait. Shadow. That name was in Shadow's story, his dream! He had said that he met a bat named Rogue…All of Sonic's mental processes slid to a halt. Shadow had met that bat…and a Knuckles who was lazy, and a Tails who was shy, and an Amy who was very protective of said fox. And then…Shadow had told him about going to fetch the Master Emerald that Eggman had stolen.

No…nononono it couldn't be, right? It was just a dream! They couldn't be _really_ here! Sonic was crazy for even thinking that, but…it was lurking in the back of his mind that for some reason, _somehow_ , this Tails here was the _same one._ It was impossible though! Because how could Shadow be there and _here_ at the same time? There was no way.

…Why was Sonic wanting to ask anyway?

"Hey TT…" the hedgehog started off in a daze, instantly gaining the attention of the three others even though Sonic was only shooting for one. The twin's gaze was wary; Sonic gave him a mix between an unsure frown and a friendly smile, the result looking like a grimace, "Can you answer one question for me?" the kit hesitantly nodded, "Okay…You, Shadow, and Knuckles went into Eggman's base to steal back the ME that he took: true or false?"

TT's eyes widened and his mouth fell open, forgetting about his fears for a second, "T-True…How do you know that?"

"Whoa…" Sonic was lost for words for the second time in the duration of five minutes. Shadow's characters actually came to _life?!_ The hedgehog then registered the question aimed at him, "Shads told me."

"What?" Knuckles inquired, completely lost now.

"Sonic? What's going on?" Tails asked, thrown for a complete loop.

If possible, TT looked even more shocked, if not completely elated, "S-Shadow told you? Where is he?! I th-thought he w-was…" At Sonic's perplexed gaze, the kit took a couple deep breaths and his anxiety crashed back down upon him in waves. He began to play with one of his tails, breaking eye contact, "I-I'm sorry for yelling…"

"Whoa wait wait wait!" When Knuckles gained the attention he wanted, he stared pointedly at the twin, "You know Shadow? How? I thought Penumbra was Shadow's double!"

TT slid farther down in his seat at the shouting, but he nodded nonetheless, "H-He is. Um…S-Shadow was just sent there. H-He said he didn't kn-know why or how…"

"Sent there?" Tails was trying and failing to make any type of sense out of all this. His mind was drawing a blank, "But that's not possible! Shadow never left the hospital!"

"Is he still there Sonic?" Knuckles frowned, suspicions growing again.

"Yeah…"

"Is he freaked out about all of this?"

Sonic scratched his head, feeling a chill as they flew through a cloud, "Well, one, I would _love_ to see Shads freak out over something, it would be hilarious. And two, I actually don't know if he realizes what's happening. He told me about that in a dream he had while he was in his coma."

"A dream?" the echidna scowled, gesturing at TT, "Then he _has_ to be lying! He can't be real! He _is_ one of Eggman's pawns! We have to do something about him!"

The twin shook his head wildly and held up his hands that were starting to tremble, "I-I'm not with Eggman! P-Please believe me! I don't u-understand it e-either….the d-dream thing…" TT pinched himself just to see if _he_ was sleeping or not, "W-We couldn't h-have been a dream…everything that happened really h-happened…"

"Sonic?" Tails glanced over at his brother to see the other in deep thought, a rarity in itself, "What do we do now?"

Sonic just stared at him for a moment before shrugging. A grin grew across his face. This was a growing mystery. While he didn't like them as much as wild adventures, he was down for them anyway, "We go visit Eggy and see if he knows about TT here, and if he doesn't, well, I say we go pay Shads a little visit."

* * *

 **A connection, albeit a rather questioning one, has been made! Guess it was a good thing that Shadow endured Sonic long enough to tell him at least some of the story, huh?**

 **Next chapter…White Acropolis!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer- Maybe if I wish on a shooting star, it will come true…**

 **A/N: No hospital visit this chapter guys – well, not the one you expect anyway – but I** _ **promise**_ **it's coming** _ **really**_ **(hint, hint) soon ;)**

 **Chapter 5- Anybody home?**

Espio felt groggy, too groggy, in fact.

He knew that this feeling was normal to waking up post-surgery, but it didn't mean he had to like it. His vision was fuzzy, his hearing was muffled, his muscles were nearly useless, and his brain refused to think coherent thoughts.

The chameleon closed his working eye when his head began to hurt from the overly bright lights and the blurry whiteness that surrounded him. He felt the wrappings that went around his head, covering the left side of his face; he also felt the stitches on his abdomen, pulling a bit every time he took too deep a breath. Bandages were bound around that too. His right arm was covered in a sturdy white cast that stopped mid-bicep; a blue sling incased it, the strap going around his neck.

Once his head stopped pounding, Espio blinked his eye open again and sighed in relief when the fuzziness had decreased in intensity just a bit. Enough to endure. Not used to only seeing half of what his vision had to offer, the chameleon – with difficulty – lifted his head and saw that he was in a hospital room. Not surprising really. What confused Espio was that he was _still_ in the room, with no police officers, no handcuffs, no anything.

He tried to think of reasons why, but his mind was too out of it to even attempt.

Letting out a low groan, the purple reptile slowly but surely sat up in his bed with one unbroken arm, weak muscles protesting wholeheartedly. He did it eventually though, slumping over in a sitting position with his white blanket sliding down from his chest, bundling up at his thighs. Espio was panting slightly, staring blankly down at his right hand, the nausea from whatever anesthetics they gave him nearly making him gag.

His upper body was swaying back and forth like he was on a boat rather than solid ground. Espio then carefully brought up a trembling hand to his covered eye socket, not feeling any pain when he gently stroked it. He knew there was no eye there. It was gone.

Gone.

Forever.

An instinctual rage that couldn't completely fester in his drugged state bubbled up in his stomach. Not a lot was going on in his mind right now, but one thing managed to fight its way through the thick fog.

He was going to kill Penumbra. If it was the last thing he ever did.

With that thought raging through his unwantedly fuzzy mind, Espio managed to keep himself from swaying on the bed, fighting the nausea. The chameleon closed his eye again, trying to focus on clearing his head and dragging himself out of the mental muck he had been thrown into. He took a few deep breaths, needing his brain to come back home from vacation. The action actually helped his psych, the fog clearing up.

More memories came back accompanied by an onslaught of confusion.

Which he hated so.

Espio rubbed his forehead with his usable hand, shifting through the perplexing information he had been _fortunate_ enough to overhear. One, apparently, Sonic and the fox kit were on friendly terms with one another. Which was hard to believe. If someone had told Espio that, he would tell them that they were insane in a heartbeat. Also, the chameleon could hardly imagine that the Sonic he had the misfortune of dealing with and the one on the communicator was one in the _same._ When did the hedgehog become so happy-go-lucky?

Espio didn't really care about that however. The duo were going after Penumbra (Chaos Control _had_ to produce some sort of amnesia. Sonic didn't know who the hedgehog was either. The chameleon had somehow escaped that fate…); that was one less target he would have to track down.

But two, _oh_ number two…he cared about that a lot. Espio gritted his teeth. Shadow was _alive_. That stupid hedgehog was somehow still _taking_ _breath_. But how? It was impossible! He had killed him with his own hands! His skull was cracked open, blood and brain everywhere! How was he not _dead?_ And on top of that, the void had to have gotten to him!

So why? Why why why why _why?_

Espio forced out a harsh sigh as his thoughts tumbled over each other, none of them explaining Shadow's animated state. After a minute of quietly pondering (fuming), the reptile tore himself away from that enraging mystery. He would think about it later, not now. He had to leave before his time ran out and the police decided to make their belated appearance.

The purple Mobian pulled out the needle attached to his arm before throwing the white sheets off of him and tossing his legs over the side of the elevated mattress. His world swam, so he sat until it stopped. Inwardly counting in his head, Espio hopped to the floor when he got to five, almost falling to the ground when the vertigo returned. He leaned against one of the medical machines, lightly panting.

Cursing the doctors and their anesthesia-pumping ways, Espio focused on something else until he was completely positive that his legs wouldn't give out on him. He brought his un-bandaged arm up to his face and concentrated, system flooding with something akin to relief when the limb flickered before disappearing. A golden eye drifted downward to see nothing but the tiled floor. He had control over his ability again.

Letting out a breathy snicker, Espio stayed invisible as he slowly made his way over to the room's door, the nausea wearing off with every step he took. The chameleon carefully pulled the metal open, poking his head out and checking one of the second story's many hallways for any activity. There was none.

However, being the ninja he was, Espio kept his steps light anyway as he searched for the stairs. He didn't want to attract any unwanted attention. He didn't come across any occupants until he reached the first floor, where it was the busiest in the hospital. The chameleon kept his one eye open for any obstacles as he made his way to the front door, sidestepping a person when there was a danger of them running right into Espio.

He made it to the front doors without incident. The reptile stood to the side of them and bided his time for when someone came in. He couldn't exactly open them himself without causing an uproar. He didn't have to wait long; a middle-aged man entered and he promptly exited.

Espio took in the city that was Station Square. Taking in the buildings, roads, and people that _shouldn't be there._ It didn't make any sense. He had questioned this before when he had first arrived with the fox, but now he could actually _think_ about it. The city…it looked like he had never invaded, like the darkness hadn't ever torn its foundations to shreds. How was that possible? Espio had more questions than answers; he needed that problem fixed immediately.

"Ahhh!"

Espio whirled his head to the left when he heard surprised shouts coming from that direction. Once he recognized the cause of those shouts, he had to prevent himself from uncharacteristically jumping for joy. There was something barreling through the citizens on the sidewalk, causing the pedestrians to dive out of the way to keep from being crashed into.

That something was Omega.

The bot was heading his way, going at a speed that wouldn't be fitting for a casual stroll. Espio didn't know why the mech had his boosters on high, but he couldn't care less.

"Omega!"

Said robot was about to fly right by him, but at the sound of his voice, the machine stopped right in front of Espio, opticals scanning the immediate area. The chameleon did so as well, seeing how some people were staring over in cautious curiosity.

Wanting to keep himself as inconspicuous as possible, Espio made his body visible for a split second, hopefully too fast for the humans to register. When Omega focused solely on where he was standing, Espio knew that his trick worked.

Still invisible, the reptile jogged (as fast as he could without pulling stitches) over to the nearest alleyway while stepping heavier so that only his companion could hear them. He then made himself visible to the bot. He barely had time to open his mouth before he was scooped up in the other's functioning arm.

Espio hissed when the action jarred his broken bones, "Omega! What is the meaning of-"

"MASTER ESPIO. I HAVE LUCKILY FOUND YOU. WE NEED TO LEAVE. I HAVE LOST MY TARGETS AND THERE ARE ANNOYING NON-TARGETS TRYING TO CAPTURE ME. FLEEING IS MOST BENEFICIAL." There was a pause as gears turned in Omega's head, "UNLESS ENGAGING THEM IS WHAT YOU WISH."

It seemed like Espio being befuddled was a reoccurring pattern.

He furrowed his brow, getting as comfortable as he could in the metal grip, "Targets? What targets?"

"PINK HEDGEHOG AND WHITE BAT."

 _Amy and Rogue? What an unexpected surprise…can't say that I'm upset, but…_ "Who is trying to capture you?"

"IT SEEMS TO BE THE GUARDIAN UNITS OF NATIONS. I HAVE TEMPORARILY LOST THEM, HOWEVER I AM MOSTLY CERTAIN THAT THEY WILL FIND US IF WE STAY HERE." Another pause, "UNLESS YOU WANT ME TO ENGAGE THEM OF COURSE, THEN I AM COMPLETELY CERTAIN THAT THEY WILL FIND US."

Espio shook his head, "No. Leave them alone, for now. There's no need to cause city mayhem just yet…I need to recover for a bit before we do that-" _Turns out it will be ridiculously easy to find my enemies, so I don't have to worry about that,_ "-and need some questions answered."

"DO YOU REQUIRE MY ASSISTANCE IN THAT?"

"If I gave you the puzzle pieces I've gathered, you'd be just as lost, if not more so."

"SO HOW WILL YOU ACQUIRE YOUR ANSWERS?"

The chameleon thought for a second before smirking, a plan forming in his mind, "I'm sure a nice family of rabbits would _love_ to give me them."

"RABBITS?"

Espio waved him off, "Enough with your questions. We need to get out of the city; I'll point out the direction you will need to go in."

Without hesitation, the robot blasted to the skies, the reptile in his grip itching to see the trio again. He'd get to show them how much of a _sweetie_ he really was.

* * *

Shadow was frowning to himself as he studied the Chaos emerald in his lap whilst nibbling on a rather tasteful chocolate chip cookie. When the striped hedgehog had woken up from his nap around thirty minutes ago, two rather unexpected surprises awaited him.

The batch of cookies from the Rabbit family was the better one out of the two. Along with the dozen or so sweets was a little note attached to the handle of the dainty basket reading: "Get well soon Shadow! From – Vanilla, Cream, and Cheese (Chao!)" Shadow was rather appreciative of the gift, getting a much needed break from the mundane hospital food they had here. And the treats weren't half bad neither (he had eaten around seven).

The other surprise was on the opposite end of the spectrum. It didn't take Shadow long at all to realize that something was very wrong with the emerald. Before he had went to sleep, the gem had a very dull glow to it. It was, like Rouge said, regaining power over time. But now, the hedgehog wasn't observing anything more than a useless rock. All of its shine and energy were gone.

The Ultimate Lifeform swallowed the rest of his dessert before picking up the dull emerald. He twisted it back and forth in his hands, trying and failing to get anything from it. He clenched his teeth when his efforts were fruitless. He placed it back on the white sheets that covered his lower section and sighed, lolling his head back against the elevated pillow. Shadow didn't know why the Chaos emerald shut all the way down, and it was bothering him immensely because he knew in his gut that it was going to take more than 'time' to fix. He couldn't pinpoint the exact reason however. It could be the doctor again, or it could be Faker just be screwing something up…

Shadow scratched underneath the somewhat irritating bandages around his head before grabbing another cookie and taking a bite out of it. He then grasped the remote lying beside him and aimed it at the flat screen on the far wall, turning from a space documentary whose voices were more annoying than the wrappings protecting where the doctors operated. The hedgehog settled for an emergency room show, chewing distractedly as the room was filled with nurses yelling about a car crash victim who was quickly bleeding out.

Well, the striped hedgehog was going to let himself out of this hospital later on in the evening – he wasn't quite feeling well enough to leave; he was still a bit woozy, and without the Chaos emerald working, he was going to have to get over it naturally – and if the gem was still nothing more than a fancy paperweight, then Shadow was going to take action. He didn't like being stripped of his powers. He had gone through it once, and he didn't want to do that again.

Speaking of that though…

Wait, no. No.

Shadow wasn't going to think about that dream anymore.

None of what happened actually happened, so there was no need in going back and analyzing anything his mind had conjured up while he was in his coma. It was nothing but some sick kind of entertainment for his psyche until he escaped his own prison his mind kept him in. An imaginary fantasy world, nothing more, nothing less. False actions, false words, false emotions…nothing was real. He wasn't going to waste his time thinking about it. Point, blank, period.

Nodding to himself, Shadow focused on the TV after licking some chocolate off his lips, watching as the doctors on-screen were hastily trying to pull out a metal pole from the car crash victim's body. The striped hedgehog then blinked in muted surprise when his window to his left began to rattle. He whipped his head over in that direction and relaxed when it was just Rouge working her way in. Why she just didn't come in the regular way, Shadow didn't know.

Attentive ruby eyes followed the bat's movements when she successfully entered and immediately settled down in the empty chair. The hedgehog stared at the black brace around her foot until a heavy sigh made him look up.

"You're off early."

"Yeah…" Rouge let out a breathy chuckle, "The Commander let me go because of my injury. Apparently chivalry isn't _completely_ dead. Even if he made me do mountains of paperwork beforehand…"

Shadow didn't like the way the other was sounding. She was stressed, or at least worried about something. Something connected with her foot perhaps. Before he asked about it however, he saw the bruising around Rouge's neck and alarms instantly went off in his mind.

"What happened today?" Shadow inquired as he sat up straighter in his bed, tone sharp. The half-eaten cookie was in his hand, momentarily forgotten.

"GUN being incompetent, as usual," the bat practically melted in her seat, crossing her legs and trying to relax. She saw the basket of sweets beside Shadow, and she beckoned them over. The hedgehog did so without complaint, itching to know who he would soon get to tear apart into pieces and/or maim painfully. Rouge smiled briefly at the little note before grabbing a cookie and chewing it delightfully. She then registered how big the basket was and how many tiny crunchy cakes were left. She rose an amused brow, "How many did you eat? Didn't know you liked sugar so much, sugar."

Shadow huffed before eating the rest of his own cookie and ridding his hands of any crumbs, "That's irrelevant right now. Tell me-"

To his slight displeasure, Rouge simply waved him off and kept quiet until she finished her dessert. She then placed her hands on her knees and Shadow knew that he was in for a story, "Let's start from the beginning first," Shadow tersely nodded, "I was on my lunch break in Emerald Coast and was enjoying food fit for a lady like myself when there was suddenly a cannon aimed at my face."

 _Eggman_ , the hedgehog inwardly hissed, "A cannon from a robot I'm guessing," Shadow calmed down some, planning a surprise visit for the doctor. He crossed his arms, "Is its parts sinking to the bottom of the sea?"

Rouge's expression lost some of its lightheartedness and the hedgehog's muscles tensed once more, "If only it was that simple," she sighed out, looking down and rotating her ankle a bit, wincing at the sting of pain that accompanied the movement, "It looked and sounded just like Omega; the doctor must've stepped up his game from the last time we saw him."

Now Shadow didn't expect that. His only response was the clenching of his fists as he let Rouge continue.

"At first I thought I was looking at _our_ Omega, so I took flight before I got turned into a pile of ashes. Thank Chaos because that wouldn't do my figure _any_ justice," Despite how serious he was, Shadow couldn't help shaking his head in exasperation, "But anyway, my plan was to go back to GUN to make sure because the last time I saw Omega was in the base. The copy was pretty fast, so I thought to get him off my tail. I kicked him and you can see what happened."

Shadow's frown deepened as he took in her injury, "His metal didn't give?"

Rouge puffed, "No! Granted, I didn't put all of my power into it, but it should've left at least a dent. It's like I didn't even hit him!"

 _Like I didn't even hit him._

"Just like the Omega from my dream…" Shadow muttered out without even thinking.

"Hm? Oh yeah I guess it kind of is hon. Except this one had seen some better days. One of his arms were gone and he had bullet holes-"

"Did you try to attack him again?" Shadow interrupted her.

Rouge didn't get mad, used to his personality, but instead she stared at him strangely, "Well…no. I didn't get a chance to. After kicking him I flew away again, but," she rubbed her neck carefully, "he got me. I thought that it was all over for me until Pinky showed up."

The hedgehog tilted his head to the side, "Rose?"

"Mhmm. I'm glad she has a great throwing arm. Sent him and me into the nearest building. I forgave her of course, I'd take a sore back over kicking the bucket any day," she stretched her back, cracking it a little, "But of course, he didn't take any damage from that either. Amy then threw another hammer so we could get out of there. At the base, our Omega was still there, so it had to be Eggman's," Rouge frowned, "Or someone else's…the copy said he wasn't following the doctor's orders, but ones from a more 'authoritative being'. I'm not sure what to think about that."

Shadow didn't like this at all. He didn't like that Eggman had just proven himself an actual threat, that it could be someone else altogether that came out of nowhere, that this Omega clone had almost killed his teammate, and most of all, that all of this was giving Shadow flashbacks that he _shouldn't_ have.

The dream wasn't real. Why was he comparing the two situations?

Yes, there were similarities. The resilient Omegas and (the chance of) Eggman not being the main opponent. But there was one main difference that counted. One was in Shadow's dream world, and he had woken up. Why couldn't his mind be on his side for once?

"What happened next?" The hedgehog questioned after tearing himself away from his thoughts.

"I told the Commander, but he didn't move until I told him about how 'powerful' the Omega clone could be. Not surprising really. When he left, I went to the infirmary and when I got out, Pinky was gone. I hung around until the Commander and the squad he took out came back. They did finally and-"

"They defeated him?"

"Hardly. They lost him."

"Lost him," Shadow repeated, deadpanning.

Rouge nodded, "See what I mean by incompetent? And not lost him like they never found him. They had him cornered, and somehow he still got away. They said that they searched everywhere for the copy, but they lost sight of him in the city."

"So he could be out there somewhere…" Shadow pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation. It didn't matter if the clone was hard to defeat; they should've had _some way_ to capture him, "Any injuries to the men?"

"Nope. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention…The bot didn't go for anyone but Pinky and I. I thought it was just because no one else attacked him, but GUN apparently let loose and Omega just ignored them."

"That's…strange."

"You can say that again honey."

Shadow stared at Rouge for a moment, mind racing. So a person who could be Eggman, could be not, ordered an Omega clone to target Rouge and Amy and to not cause mass destruction? Maybe it wasn't the doctor… "I'm going after him," Shadow said as he tossed the white covers off of himself. Forget about this evening, he was checking out right now.

"Oh no you don't!" Rouge exclaimed, ready to hop out of her seat, "You're staying here mister! You have just woken up from a five day coma this _morning_ and you're still healing from-"

Shadow grunted apathetically, cutting the bat off as he turned to get off the bed, ignoring how the fast movements messed with his vision, "Save it, Rouge. The longer that robot is out there, the longer it poses a danger to others _and_ the Omega we know," he locked eyes with her before beginning to stand up, "If Omega is dispatched, there could be the chance that he would be labeled the villain."

The albino GUN agent groaned, "Then we don't activate him until we take care of the clone. For this _one_ time hon, can't you just-" Rouge gasped when she saw Shadow legs start to buckle. She swooped in before he could hit the ground, keeping him steady on his own two feet. She grinned, "See there. How are you gonna fight if you can't even stand straight?"

Shadow growled and tried to push her away, which wasn't as effective as it could've been since the room was tilted on its axis, "Let me go…"

"In a second…" Rouge gently pushed the hedgehog back into the bed, smirking at the glare sent her way, "There we go, sugar. I know you'd rather be out there than in here right now, but just wait a little longer. For me, please?" She rolled her eyes when the intensity of the glare increased, "Think about it this way, I encountered him _hours_ ago. You have no idea where he is now. And plus…" the bat reached over, Shadow watching her carefully, and briefly rubbed over the spot where the doctors had worked, cloth against cloth. She retracted her hand when the hedgehog twitched away, "I don't think reopening that wound would do you any favors honey."

The Ultimate Lifeform stared at her before pointedly looking away, fists clenched. It was quiet in the room for a moment before Shadow slowly but surely returned to the position he was in earlier, legs back under the blanket, "…I see your point Rouge," he said as he looked at her out of the corner of his eye, gaze sharp, "But I'm leaving later on in the evening. Nothing you say will-"

"Yeah yeah," Rouge consented, interrupting his sentence. Seeing that their little argument was over, she flew back over to the chair, grabbed the cookie basket, and sat beside her partner on the bed. The agent handed him the carrier before laying down on her stomach. Shadow rose a silent brow at her, and she snuggled into the extra pillow in response, "What?" she asked in mock-innocence as she burrowed beneath the covers, "If I'm gonna stay here, I might as well take a nap. I've had a long day and this bed is comfortable." She winked before her eyes fluttered closed. She mumbled into the softness under her, "Way better than that chair over there…"

Shadow just scoffed, digging into the basket and getting yet another cookie, "I'm sure that chair is adequate enough if you slept in it all of the time I was out."

"Mmmm….yeah, but it was kinda chilly. Right now, you're like a hot water bottle, warm…" she stuck her hand out and poked him in the side with a grin, retracting before he could slap her away, "…and squishy."

"I am not _squishy._ "

"If you say so…"

Shadow didn't dignify that with a response. He instead finished his chocolatey treat before palming the dull red Chaos emerald, still perplexed about it as well, "Do you think that the clone's appearance and the Chaos emerald completely losing power are linked?"

"You would wait until I'm asleep to keep talking…" Rouge complained into her pillow, eyes staying closed, "We can talk later Mr. Sleep-Is-Unimportant."

"Rouge…"

"Shhhh," was the last thing Shadow heard until soft snores filled the air.

The Ultimate Lifeform glanced down at her resting face before sighing, dropping the gem back into his lap and giving the flat screen his full attention. Some human was brought in with a knife halfway driven through the back of the head. How tragic.

* * *

Tails squinted against the harsh sun and smiled when he made out the dark structure in the distance that stood out from all of the white around it, "We're almost there guys! White Acropolis!"

Sonic grinned, hanging on to the wing of the Tornado as it began to slowly decrease in altitude, "Time to pay Egghead a visit!"

"Um…" TT began softly, nervousness rising every second they got closer to where Eggman was supposed to be hiding, "I-Is it okay that I s-stay in the p-plane until you're done…"

"Oh no you don't," Knuckles looked sharply at him, keen eyes scanning the kit, "You're coming with us. We can't chance you flying off somewhere when we're not looking."

"Come _on_ Knux," the speedster nearly pleaded, "Cut him some slack, will ya? I mean, after all that he's told us, you _still_ don't believe him?" Because Sonic almost completely believed the dimension hopping stuff now from what TT shared. He told the group about his friends – they were _really_ surprised that Mephiles was one of them (and the other Sonic seemed to be quite a handful, to put it lightly) – his enemies – yeah, Sonic was definitely going to do something about Espio later – and about how his world was practically _gone._ What kind of person would make all of that up?

Especially about Cream, Vanilla, and Cheese dying…

"I don't believe him _because_ of what he told us!" Knuckles countered, turning his glare to Sonic, "He's said nothing but crazy talk! I might have followed him for a bit, but when he said that Mephiles was in their circle of friends, I stopped! _Mephiles_ Sonic! Do you not remember who that is?"

The blue hedgehog just scoffed, "How could I forget the Shadow look-alike who hung onto nothing _but_ the past and killed me, leading to the strangest Super transformation ever?" Sonic shivered and he didn't know if it was just because of the chill in the air, "Of course I know who that is! It's just that he could be completely different! _Alternate_ reality, remember? Anything goes!"

"Yeah, 'anything goes' alright, as in _sanity_ out of the _window_!" Knuckles didn't understand how the hedgehog could just believe anything that came out of the copy's mouth, "Because this is insane! All signs point to Eggman!"

"And they all pointed to Baldy when the younger me and Tails showed up!" Sonic brought up, giving the echidna a smug grin, "How come you didn't question _them_ when they joined the party back when?"

"Because we knew what was going on then!"

"We do now too! I mean, TT just _told_ us."

Knuckles' face was as red as his fur. He snapped his head toward the front of the plane, "Tails! What's your opinion about all of this?"

The pilot glanced back at the echidna before doing the same at Sonic, who seemed like he wasn't even interested in the conversation anymore. The hedgehog was smiling at the incoming grand structure, aching to get in there and destroy something. Tails just sighed, refocusing on landing his pride and joy, "I really don't have one right now. The only way we can find out the truth is to confront Eggman about it."

The guardian let out a puff of air, letting himself calm down. The kit was right, there was no way to know for sure without any confirmation. Which Eggman would surely give them (or fail to hide), "Hey Blue."

"Yeah?"

Knuckles sent a smug smirk over the hedgehog's way, "When we figure out that I'm right about all of this, thus winning the argument, you'll have to do something for me."

Sonic glanced over and returned the smirk, "Oh really Knucklehead? And what would that be?"

"I don't know yet. Just know that it's going to be entertaining for me."

The blue hero scratched his nose, "Well, keep dreamin' because that what never happen. When it shows that _I'm_ right…" the grin grew larger, "I'm just sayin' that our fridge has been looking really empty the past couple days."

Knuckles scrunched up his nose, displeasure and confusion clearly shown, "You want me to go _grocery shopping_ for you? You'll get it done faster than I would! And why can't Tails just do it?"

"Because it's Sonic's turn to stock up," the young pilot pipped up from the front.

"Thank you for the compliment Knux! But it's not about speed this time heh… The less time I spend in public areas, the lower the chance of Amy somehow finding me."

Knuckles had to resist rolling his eyes. Sure the girl was…persistent, so say the least, but she wasn't a deadly disease, "You know you can't hide from her forever."

"Not that long…just until she stops being all lovey-dovey."

"…Which is forever."

TT looked between the hedgehog and echidna, somewhat intrigued by their banter. Yes, he was still very wary of Sonic and wasn't going to volunteer to be alone with him anytime soon, but he was shocked with how much the blue one was smiling. The twin had never seen the Sonic he knew smile _once._ Smirk yes, smile no. It was weird to see it now.

Oh yeah, it was also strange that Sonic wasn't cursing and threatening anyone every two seconds…

TT pursed his lips. This Sonic…was basically the other one's opposite right? It seemed like it. And he liked _his_ Tails so maybe the fox had nothing to fear? He just didn't know. He wished that Amy was here to guide him…

"Heads up guys," Tails said, interrupting TT's thoughts. The others on the plane followed the pilot's line of sight, focusing on the large figure bounding their way, moving through the thick slow and leaving massive tracks behind it. Its mechanical limbs clanked together with every stride it took, red and black paint glinting in the sun, "We've got company!"

Sonic smirked at the sight of the familiar robot. Looked like Eggman put back together his guard dog. The hedgehog just shrugged, getting ready to drop down. He'd put Fido back in the doghouse any day, "I'll handle this puppy!" the hero called to the others as he kept his gaze trained on Egg-Cerberus, "You guys find Egghead!" Before anyone could respond, the hedgehog jumped off the wing and plummeted to the sea of white below.

When he got close enough to the ground, Sonic curled up and braced himself for impact. Fortunately, it wasn't as unpleasant as he thought it was going to be, for he burrowed through the soft snow instead of bouncing against it. The speedster spat out semi-melted mush as he dug out of the reflective fluffiness, thinking that he could go for a nice warm chilidog right about now.

Sonic shook himself off as he stood sock deep in the snow, keeping an eye on the oversized dog and grinning when its attention was diverted off of the plane and onto him. He whistled loudly, "Yeah over here you stinky mutt! It's time to put you down!"

A booming rumble that was supposed to imitate a growl resonated from Egg-Cerberus' chest as it charged forward. Sonic, not intimidated whatsoever, got into a ready stance and waited for the right time to strike. As robo-mutt bounded closer however, a small frown marred the blue Mobian's face. He noticed that somethings were different. The sturdier looking metal, the absence of a vibrant red antenna that shouted 'This is how you defeat me! Right here!'…those he kinda expected.

But the blood on its teeth? Nope, Sonic would've had to buy a vowel for that one.

Sonic hopped to the side when said metallic teeth chomped down on where he had been. The hero's frown turned back into an adrenaline-filled grin. So what if McNosehair's been feeding it something on the rare side? That wasn't going to change the way this battle was going to end.

With a whoop, Sonic homing attacked the side of the canine and the fight was on.

00

TT watched wide-eyed at the scene below as they flew closer to the supposed lab. That robot was the biggest one he had ever _seen_ , and Sonic dropped down without hesitation with a _smile_ on his face! He switched his gaze to Tails and Knuckles who didn't even look fazed by this. In fact, they weren't paying attention to Sonic at all! He turned back to the scuffle to see the hedgehog holding his own against something that was ten times his size, maybe more. He hadn't seen the other Sonic do something like this.

"I-Is he g-going to be a-alright?" he asked, and the words felt strange on his tongue. He never thought he'd be worrying about any blue hedgehogs in his lifetime.

"Sonic?" Tails grinned back at him, "Yeah, he'll be fine! Egg-Cerberus would be nothing but a warm-up."

"Lucky for him," Knuckles grumbled, rubbing his hands up and down his arms. He then turned to the non-piloting fox, "You shouldn't be worried about _him_ though. When we find out that you're just a worthless clone-"

"If," Tails corrected.

The echidna rolled his eyes, " _If_ we find out that you're just a worthless special clone and that you've lied to us," he hit his namesakes together, "Get ready for a pounding of a lifetime!"

TT ducked down deeper into his seat, ears flattening against his head, "I-I'm not-"

"That's what Eggman would want you to say!"

"You're just repeating yourself now Knuckles," the fox in the front seat chuckled as he brought the Tornado down for a landing in front of the base. The two Mobians jumped out, and (with a little 'encouragement' from Knuckles) the newest member did as well.

The Tailses hovered quickly over to the massive front door while Knuckles jogged behind them. Once there, the echidna reared back his arm before punching right through the metal, the door crumpling to the ground.

"Alright," Tails peered inside the structure, surprised that there were no generic robots attacking them yet, "Let's find us an Eggman!" he hovered past the threshold and Knuckles was beginning to follow him until he saw that the second fox was still shivering at the entrance.

He narrowed his eyes, "Come on! Or is there a _reason_ you don't want to come inside?"

TT was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Confront Eggman, or confront this version of Knuckles…Eggman it was. He shook his head before flying inside behind his dimensional counterpart, hearing the echidna's footsteps behind him.

The trio roamed the unexpectedly vacant hallways of the acropolis, not seeing one hostile enemy that should have been there. Tails was beginning to doubt that Eggman was there at all.

"Um, Knuckles? Are you sure that you read the ME correctly?"

"Yes I'm _sure_! What the Master Emerald showed me was practically a picture of this place! I don't know why – What the?" Both of the vulpines glanced back to see the guardian staring confusedly at a sunken white tile that his foot had activated. The fox duo knew exactly what it meant.

Being the closest, TT instinctively acted. He threw himself at the echidna, tackling him to the ground hard. He _felt_ the rage building in Knuckles, but before the fox could get a fist-sized bruise, the guardian peered past the Mobian on top of him to see a metal cage covering the space he was just occupying.

"…A trap?" He questioned before watching the twin get off of him. As he got up off the cold floor and dusted himself off, Knuckles stared at the nervous fox. After debating it for a split second, he muttered, "Thanks."

TT seemed surprised to hear it, if those shocked sapphire irises were anything to go by. He gave Knuckles a tiny nod.

"So this has to mean that the doctor's here, right?" Tails provided as he went over to the large cage, examining every inch of it. It had come out of the floor like a giant bear trap, so there were no latches to escape if somebody actually got trapped. He glanced over at the echidna glaring at the thing, "Would you have been able to get out of it?"

"Let's see…" Knuckles punched the trap, and a very loud thud echoed throughout the hall they were in. The echidna hissed as he shook his hand, "No," he frustratingly ground out, "No, I wouldn't have."

"We're gonna have to be more careful from now on while we look," Tails frowned as he tapped his chin. He then hovered over to his red friend and held out his hands, "I think it's best if I carry you until we find Eggman."

Knuckles sighed, holding his arms up and feeling the kit wrap his fingers around his wrists, "Fine," he didn't like this, but he would hate being helplessly trapped even more. Not much more was said before the three carried on. One of them getting more and more anxious as they got deeper.

About five minutes later, all progress skid to a halt when the trio came upon a sizable hole in the wall of the lab.

"Whoa…" Tails carefully put Knuckles down, approaching the open gap. The echidna followed him, both of them peeking through it, seeing the vast whiteness that laid beyond.

The guardian then glanced at the ruined metal, seeing how thick it was, "Someone or something really wanted to get in or out of here…"

The kit looked at him, curiosity peaked, "Do you think Sonic did this?"

Knuckles shook his head, gesturing to the perfect snow layer outside, "There's no sign that he or that giant bucket of bolts had even been here. I wonder how recent this is…there isn't any sign of rust."

"I-It happened e-earlier today…"

The echidna spun around to glare at TT only to find that the fox wasn't there. He glanced around and saw the newest fox crouching down in front of a large puddle of blood that he and Tails had _somehow_ missed.

"That's fresh!" Tails, a little concerned now, zipped over beside his mirror image. He squatted as well and saw that the red liquid was concentrated in a big central puddle as well as small splatters around it. Those smaller drops were completely dry, "Or maybe not that fresh… You're right TT, it had to happen a few hours ago. But what exactly went on here…?" he focused on Knuckles, "Did you see anybody in the image the Master showed you?"

The echidna communicated a negative, "Nobody. Just the scenery," Knuckles looked away from the blood and down the hallway, "We need to keep moving though. It's possible that Eggman already knows that we're here, and if that's the case, we have to hurry."

"I guess you're right…" Tails sighed out, "The puddle was just strange to see, that's all," _I wonder if whoever it belongs to is alright,_ he grabbed the red one's wrists again, and they were off once more, leaving the mysterious blood behind.

A few moments later and the Mobians were now slowly walking into Eggman's office. They were all shocked at what they saw. There was no doctor, no robots, no activated computers. Everything was shut off. All of the screens in there showed nothing but blackness.

"He…He really isn't here!" Tails shockingly said, seeing the layers of dust all over the many keyboards around.

"But he has to be!" Knuckles growled before punching a cushioned chair, sneezing when many unwanted particles invaded his senses, "The Master Emerald – the energy flux – and the traps-!" The echidna turned towards the second fox standing in the doorway. He marched over to him and thrusted a finger in the other's chest, "You know where he is!" he barked out, "Tell us!"

TT shrunk down, "I-I don't! I s-swear!"

Tails hovered over and pushed the offending finger away from his nearly crying double, "Calm down Knuckles! Yelling won't get us anywhere. I really don't think he knows," the young genius scratched his head, trying to figure things out, "It doesn't seem like he's here, but that doesn't make any sense, with the traps and Egg-Cerberus and all. Maybe he was just too lazy to turn them off too?"

"Or maybe he's just hiding like a coward in here somewhere!" Knuckles suggested, "Who knows how big this place _actually_ is? He might have a secret room here that-"

"Hey guys!"

TT yelped at that sudden voice and immediately hid behind the closest thing, which was Knuckles.

Sonic, seeing this, smiled apologetically, "Ah…sorry bud! Didn't mean to scare ya like that!"

The shaking kit just peered out from behind the echidna, watching the hedgehog warily.

When it seemed like cowering fox wasn't going to respond, Tails eventually focused on his brother, "You're back! How'd you defeat it this time?" his eyes then took in the hedgehog's appearance, growing wide when they saw the streaks of blood on the other's body, "And where did it hurt you?!"

Sonic held up his hands in a calming gesture, "I'm alright lil' bro! It's not mine. When I spin dashed the pup in the head, some of the blood on its mouth rubbed off on me. It's all cool!" he then placed a hand on his hip, grinning cockily, "And I beat it like I did before, led it right into a wall. Guess it's true that old dogs can't learn new tricks!"

"Whoa back up," Knuckles furrowed his brow, "There was blood on its mouth? Did you see the blood in the hallway?" Was there a connection between the two?

Sonic nodded, grin slipping away, "Yeah I saw. I didn't do that," the hero glanced around the place thoroughly before chuckling to himself. He looked at the echidna, emerald irises sparkling with mischief, "Guess you and that rock aren't as close as you thought, huh Knux?"

"Shut it," the guardian was itching to throw a punch, but resisted the urge. He could do that later, "Back on the subject of Eggman, do you think he's hiding in a new wing he built or something?"

"Nope! I just checked. I figured that the last place Baldy would hide would be his old main office."

Tails frowned, "I just don't get it! Why would he have Egg-Cerberus guard the place and have traps all around?"

Sonic shrugged, "Don't know what's up with those trap things, ran into about twenty of those. Almost got caught," he tapped his foot, thinking, "Ol' Eggy must've gone bonkers or something," the speedster then stepped to the side to get a good look at TT. Sonic grinned at the wary fox, "You ready to see Shadow little guy?"

At that name, the kit stood a bit straighter, more than ready to have someone he knew to use as an anchor (aka a convenient shield of things that were scary).

"What?! You're giving up that fast?"

"You're a little late to the party Knucklehead," Sonic winked playfully, "Speed _is_ my game y'know."

"This is serious Sonic!" Knuckles clenched his namesakes, "Angel Island almost fell out of the _sky_ today! The emeralds that we have don't work! You can't just push those issues to the side to-"

The speedster put a hand on a red shoulder, "You're getting ahead of yourself Knux! Who said I was puttin' those on the backburner? I want to find out as much as you do! If we go talk to Shads, heck, he might give us all the answers we need!" Sonic patted the dubious echidna before linking his fingers behind his head, "I mean, I'm sure jumping dimensions would've caused _something_ to get all wonky, dontcha think?"

Knuckles grumbled under his breath and turned his head away, hating the obscure reason he found in Sonic's words. But…why would the Master Emerald lead them here for no reason? The echidna didn't have an answer for that.

Tails snickered, "I think that was him agreeing."

The blue hero smirked, turning on his heel, "Alright then, let's-"

"I say that we look around for _anything_ out of place for at least one more time," Knuckles cut in, having a gut feeling that they were missing something important.

Sonic blinked before shrugging, "If it will get you to stop crying Knux, then yeah, we can search for a little longer."

"I am _not-!_ "

"And _then_ we can give Shads a little surprise visit!" the speedster finished while giving the newest fox a thumbs up, ignoring the echidna's sputtering in the background.

Eventually leaving the abandoned room and (after a while) the whole structure altogether, relief that he hadn't felt in a long time filled TT's system. They were going to Shadow. He wouldn't be alone in this world anymore.

* * *

 **Next chapter…surprises, surprises everywhere!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer- Not ever going to happen…sadly…**

 **Chapter 6- Let sleeping dogs lie**

White Acropolis. One might say that it was beautiful if they ignored the contrasting abandoned lab that marred the landscape, discarded pieces of rusted metal all around the white-covered structure. There was snow everywhere, falling from the cloudy sky, layering the mountains and valleys. The trees all around had their branches weighed down with the mushy fluff. It was some sort of a wintery wonderland.

And if a specific someone hadn't been falling straight out of the sky, he might've appreciated it as such.

Penumbra's panicked screams filled the air as he clawed at nothing, surprised maroon irises focused on the clouds above and the snow being released from them. Freezing cold winds whipped along his back, sending unfamiliar chills throughout his system. He continued to yell as he uncontrollably descended.

But then, he glanced down at what he was holding, and his terrified shouts trailed off. He still had that rock. And it was glowing again. A happy and relieved smile stretched across his face as he got ready to Chaos Control, but then that disappeared when it promptly stopped shining.

Nummy began to panic again, trying and failing to pull the energy he needed from the rock he had. His screams resumed when he realized that he couldn't. The hedgehog's body flipped in the air, and he was now squinting against the stinging wind, whimpering whenever some white stuff got into his eyes. That whimper turned into a full-out whine when he saw that he was heading straight for a very deep ravine.

He flailed his limbs, wanting to land in the soft white ground, but he was making no progress. His fate was sealed.

Penumbra gasped when he soared past ground level, going deeper and deeper into the darkness. Then, he yelped in shock when something wrapped around his ankle to abruptly stop his fall. The drastic change in speed had yanked the rock out of his grip. He watched as it plummeted into the blackness, futilely reaching out to grab it again.

"Ack! You're heeaaavvvyyy…"

The striped hedgehog glanced up to see what or who was holding him, instantly forgetting about the rock. He immediately recognized the other. Arms dangling beneath him, Penumbra cocked his head as his body was slowly dragged upwards, "Frrriiiiend?"

Charmy blinked in surprise at the other's voice below. He looked down as his wings worked double time, beating frantically to lift the heavy load. The bee managed a smile, panting a bit as he flew higher. The edge of the ravine was close, "Yeah I'm your friend! Remember me?"

The only answer he received was a blank stare.

The insect forcibly laughed, the muscles connected to his wings starting to strain, "Remember?" It may have slipped his mind that the other couldn't completely understand him, "I was there when you first woke up, when we had that whole Sonic intervention thing, when you arrived in…Station Square…" Charmy trailed off as they made it back above ground. He dumped Nummy unceremoniously into the snow, giving his wings a break and falling to his knees. Tears formed in the corners of Charmy's eyes as he recalled all that had happened.

Cream and her family were dead…Shadow was dead…Station Square was in danger…They were all teleported…

The kid let out a gasp as he searched around frantically for any of the others. From what he could see through the falling snow, there wasn't anyone else there. Charmy jumped to his feet, chest constricting in worry. He cupped his hands around his mouth, "Guys? Silver? Silver!" when he didn't get a response, Charmy's concern grew worse. _Where is everyone?_ He thought, brushing some white mush off his nose, _Penumbra teleported all of us right? Did…Did we all get separated for some reason? If that's the case, they can't be that far away!_

Charmy wiped away the moistness from his eyes, pushing the sad deaths of his friends to the back of his mind. He was about to go on an adventure! Adventurers couldn't be sad! Setting his resolve, the bee turned around to look at Penumbra, smiling at what he saw. The hedgehog gazed at the snow in awe before beginning to play in it, getting little bundles of white stuck in his fur. _At least I'm not all alone…_

Chuckling at the striped Mobian's antics, the bee hovered over to where Penumbra was. At the hedgehog's side, he caught the attention of Nummy, who had playfully burrowed himself halfway into the cold fluffiness, "Hey Nummy, look!" when the other was staring curiously at him, Charmy tilted his head up and opened his mouth, sticking out his tongue. He giggled to himself when a snowflake handed on it, "You try it!" he said, slightly warped because his tongue was neglecting its word-forming duties to catch drifting snow.

Penumbra cocked his head a bit before shaking his whole body, ridding himself of some of his temporary white fur. He then copied what the bee was doing, a large smile forming on his muzzle when he felt the cold wetness in his mouth.

The duo did that for a couple minutes, just tasting the fresh snow, until Charmy figured that it was time to go searching for his friends.

The bee looked over at the striped one. Penumbra now was just enjoying the feeling of the mush on his face, eyes closed and everything. The kid nudged the hedgehog, waiting until he was focused on him to start talking, "C'mon Nummy! We have to look for everybody else before they get too far away!"

Penumbra just blinked. Charmy was then just reminded with how…uneducated the other was.

The insect hopped into the air and began hovering, wings not tired anymore. He wrung his hands together, trying to come up with something that Nummy would understand, "Um, follow me?" No reaction, "Let's go?" the hedgehog got off his haunches and stood on all fours, looking expectedly at the kid.

Charmy grinned at his accomplishment, "Cool! Now-" he was then cut off when the wind picked up and more snow began to fall, slicing the bee's visibility in half. "Oh great! Now it'll be harder to find the others!" he focused on Nummy and was caught off guard with how calm he looked while he was staring at the bee. Was he not worried about the cold? Charmy shivered as he gazed off in one direction, seeing the outline of a building in the distance, "Let's start off going that way!"

The bee flew toward the structure, slowly at first, but when he saw that Nummy was keeping up just fine despite the wind and snow, he increased his speed, wanting to find someone else as soon as possible. As they got closer to the building, Charmy's hopes started to diminish, but then he saw something green by one of the walls of the place. It wasn't long before he heard banging as well, accompanied by a, "Hello? Anybody IN THERE?"

Charmy couldn't contain his happiness. It was Vector! Of course, it wasn't Silver, but they were a step closer to having everyone together again!

"Vector!"

Hearing that slightly nasally voice over the winds that were picking up, the green crocodile turned away from the sealed door he was pounding at to try to pinpoint where it came from. He rose his hand to shield his eyes from the unwanted coldness. A couple seconds passed until two figures came into view, one waving at him frantically.

The reptile's shoulders sagged in relief as they approached him. Thank goodness that he wasn't lost alone in the middle of nowhere. Just being lost is a major step up, "Heya there Charmy," Vector smiled in response to the beaming bee's face, "and Penumbra," he added when said hedgehog looked at him with recognition swirling in his eyes.

Nummy, cogs turning in his head, turned to the bee, "…Chharrrrmy?" he then glanced back at the croc, "Veector?"

The insect clapped his hands together in glee. "That's it Nummy! You got our names right! Isn't that awesome Vector?"

The croc sighed. Maybe being alone would've been better than being with this hyperactive kid…Vector shook his head to get rid of that thought. It was better to be together, especially with everything that happened before. He tried to not think about it.

"Yeah, it's great, but what would be even greater is if someone would open this DANG DOOR!" Vector whirled back around to bang on the metal again, but the outcome didn't change. Nobody came. He just wanted to get out of the cold! Was that too much to ask?

"Maybe no one's in there?" Charmy provided, wrapping his arms around himself to preserve some body heat.

"Bah!" Vector punched the door one last time, like it was its fault for not opening, "There has to be some kind of way we can get inside," the croc took a step back from the building, looking to the left and trailing the connecting wall of the place until it disappeared behind all of the falling snow, "With a place this big, there HAS to be another door somewhere. Follow me, kiddo," with that, Vector jogged away through the white fluff.

"Roger!" Charmy buzzed in response before hovering after the croc, hearing the crunch of Penumbra's footsteps behind him. The winds whipping around them had calmed a bit. The bee quickly caught up with the green reptile who was eyeing the building as they began to check the perimeter, "So…I'm guessing that you haven't seen any of the others right?"

"Nada," Vector explosively sighed, "Didn't come across _anyone_ until you two showed up," he glanced over his shoulder at Penumbra, who was trailing them with a somewhat confused expression on his face. There was no doubt that he was listening to their conversation, but he wasn't comprehending it. The croc turned his attention back to the floating bee when the hedgehog had locked eyes with him, "Ya think that he knows where they are?"

Charmy pursed his lips and tapped his chin, "I dunno…I guess since he teleported us? But how are we gonna ask him that? He can't understand us!"

"That's the question to answer, ain't it?" Vector rubbed the back of his head, showing his inexperience with this type of situation. He peered back at Penumbra again just to see the striped one bite at the snow and smile at the chilled taste. Fortunately for him, it wasn't yellow. "I think we should figure that out once we get inside and out of the cold," the croc pounded at the wall beside him, "IF we ever do!"

"I'm sure we'll get inside and warm eventually!" Charmy returned to wrapping his arms around himself, "I'm tired of all of this cold! Do you think Silver's freezing like we are?"

Vector fought the urge to roll his eyes; he failed, "He's got fur kid. If he's anywhere near us, he could just curl up and be all toasty and comfortable," he looked at the insect, " _Us_ on the other hand, need somewhere where we can – ACK!" The croc was caught by surprise when his foot snagged on something covered by snow, making it blend in with the whiteness all around. Vector landed face first, getting an unwanted mouthful of the fluffy coldness. He heard stifled laughter behind him, and a tick mark formed on his forehead.

However, before he could pull his head up and say anything to the kid, there was a hand gripping his forearm, "Vector?"

Said croc raised his face out of the snow and blinked over at hedgehog crouching low next to him, tugging on his arm a bit. He had a worried expression on his face. Vector stared in confusion for a quick moment until it clicked that the other was trying to help him up. A _real_ turnaround from being pinned by said hedgehog back when.

Vector barely got his legs under him before the hand on his arm tightened and he was yanked to his feet, almost stumbling into a smiling Penumbra. He stood straighter when the striped Mobian let go of him. The croc dusted himself off and saw Nummy tilt his head at him, as if expecting something. Vector said the first thing that came to mind, "Thanks."

He apparently did the right thing, for Penumbra's smile widened, "Thaaanksss!"

"Ooo! Ooo! We can teach him something!" Charmy excitedly buzzed, flying over to the confused and curious pair. He zoomed around Nummy's head before stopping right before him, "When Vector says 'thanks', the way to answer that is to say 'you're welcome'!"

A perplexed frown replaced the hedgehog's beaming expression, "…Thanks? Yyyouuu'rrre welllcooome?"

Charmy clapped, thoroughly entertained, "Right!" he then backed up and nudged Vector, "Say thanks again!" he whispered.

"Look, kid, there will be plenty of time to do this later-"

"C'mon please? It'll be cool for him to learn from us!"

Figuring that the bee wouldn't let them go anywhere until he got what he wanted, Vector cursed under his breath before focusing on the striped Mobian, "Thanks you know…for pulling me out of the snow."

Penumbra just stared at him for a moment and Vector was beginning to think that this was just a waste of time, but then a hesitant lopsided grin started to form on the hedgehog's muzzle, "…You're welcome!"

"Woo!" Charmy laughed as he flipped in the air, "We did it!" he then turned to Vector who couldn't hold in a satisfactory smile; the bee held up a hand, "Up top!" The croc and bee high-fived, the former not one to leave someone hanging. The youngest of the three whirled to face Penumbra, hand still raised, "You too!"

Nummy looked between the two before settling on the bee and slowly raising a hand. Charmy clapped it and began to chuckle. The hedgehog joined in as well while Vector just shook his head with a small smile on his face.

But all good times had to come to an end…especially when whatever Vector tripped on began to _move._

The trio were shocked speechless when it did, backing away from the thing that was raising out of the snow. It wasn't long before they realized that the thing was a _tail_ , and it was attached to something _much_ bigger.

"What in the heck…" Vector whispered, half awed and half terrified to the core, as the gigantic robot body stood higher and higher, shaking all of the camouflaging snow off of its body. "…is that?" he finished off in a degrading squeak.

"It's…It's huge!" Charmy loudly muttered as he hid himself behind the sturdy croc, backing up slowly as Vector did. He peeked over and gripped the older Mobian's shoulder, watching as the red and black dog-like bot booted up in front of them, "What are we gonna do?!"

Well, the answer was obvious, "We gotta run before it-" Vector's words froze on his tongue when the dog sharply looked back at them. The croc was paralyzed by its stare. The bee's grip on his shoulder increased, "Oh _crud_."

A deep, mechanical growl permeated the air, louder than the blowing winds. The pair of terrified Mobians were stock-still as the ginormous bot turned around and focused on them, the internal rumbling getting louder still.

However, a very different sound then emitted from in front of the duo, catching their attention. Penumbra was standing at full height with his lips pulled back in a scowl, snarling fearlessly up at the behemoth before them.

"W-What…" Charmy stuttered out, seeing the giant dog take a step forward and lower its head to be eye level to Penumbra, both wanting to intimidate one another, "What is Nummy doing? He's gonna get hurt!"

"He's protectin' us, I think," Vector provided, going back and forth in his head whether they should run or not. If they stay, they might get attacked, but if they sprint away, the mutt may think that it was a sick game of fetch…

"Go."

The frightened duo took their eyes off of the towering mechanical canine to focus on Penumbra, who was glancing sharply back at them, maroon eyes commanding obedience.

Guess Vector's decision was made for him.

"We gotta go hide or somethin' while they duke it out," the croc mumbled to the bee.

Astonished, Charmy responded, "We can't just leave him! We have to help somehow!"

"What are we gonna do against THAT?" Vector quietly hissed, taking hold of the kid's arm, "I'm sure he can handle himself," he glanced around and looked through the falling snowflakes to look for a place to go. There were a few thick trees around…that would have to do. Hopefully Penumbra would keep fido busy so that it wouldn't know where they went.

Charmy didn't get any more say because he was suddenly being dragged away, hurrying toward the cluster of trees. The bee gulped before peering backwards, watching as the robot attempted to go after them, only to be stopped by a lowly crouching Penumbra.

The dog growled louder before snapping down at the hedgehog only for Nummy to sidestep the attack. Charmy let out a breath he didn't know that he was holding. The striped hedgehog then lunged at the mecha, claws at the ready. The dog just swatted him away with a resonating thud, sending him straight back down towards the ground, a cloud of snow puffing up on impact. Penumbra just shook the hit off and got back on all fours, lips parted to show up his elongated canines. Neither attacked again; they were now carefully circling another, snarling.

A tree trunk then blocked his vision of the fight.

"Did it see us?" Vector asked as he put his back against the rough plant, breathing hard.

Charmy shook his head, "Nope! Nummy's still taking him on!" the bee poked his head out to the side a little, wanting to stay hidden but also wanting to watch the fight. The croc did the same, anticipation growing. The two opponents now were at a stand-off, both vibrating from the harsh growls coming from within.

Then, like a flare had gone off, Penumbra curled into a ball and launched himself at the mech's face. To Vector's and Charmy's surprise, the attack didn't hit. Instead, the robot got _extremely_ lucky and snapped his jaws at the right time. The hiding duo gasped when the agonized scream impinged their ears. Vector's eyes were wide as they took in Nummy hanging from the bot's deadly mouth, right leg imprisoned in that razor-toothed trap. Blood was visibly oozing out and down the hedgehog's leg, out of the dog's mouth, making it look like something that jumped right out a nightmare.

Penumbra's face was twisted up in pain and torment as he tried and failed to pry the mutt's jaw open.

"No…" Charmy was shivering in fright, "We…We have to go out there!"

Vector just gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, watching on silently.

Another tortured shout filled the air with the dog began to violently shake the rodent back and forth, more blood being flung everywhere, painting the surrounding snow red. Then, it apparently got tired of that, because it promptly let Penumbra go, sending the hedgehog careening into the wall of the metal structure. On instinct, Nummy curled himself up and spun, slicing through the wall like a hot knife through butter.

At this angle, Vector and Charmy couldn't see their friend on the inside. All they saw was the giant dog bounding over toward the hole in the wall; it could only stick its snout into it. The mutt was snapping at something before changing gears, turning slightly to the side to wildly claw at the same thing hidden within the building's walls.

The Mobians in the snow were fearing for Penumbra's life.

Charmy, wanting to do something, began to fly forwards, but Vector wrapped arm around the kid's waist to keep him back, "What do you think you're doing? Did you NOT just see what happened?"

"I did! That's why we have to go!" the bee sniffed, eyes watering up, "We can't just…We can't just-!"

Vector shuffled in his spot, looking uncomfortably away from the crying child, "We ARE goin' to help Penumbra, alright?" he gazed over at the robot, which had returned to biting at something inside. The croc hated to think about what could be happening right now.

"When?! We're just standing around!"

"Um…we'll do it…" Vector trailed off when the towering canine backed away from the opening in the structure before it searched the immediate area. It worried the reptile that Nummy hadn't ran back out yet, but maybe that's because he had been smart and fled deeper into the building? That theory could actually be true because he didn't see any more blood on the robot that wasn't already there. He stayed quiet until the mutt wandered off with its muzzle to the ground, most likely trying to relocate them or Penumbra. "…Now," Vector said to answer the kid's question, "Now's the perfect time."

Charmy just nodded to him as they snuck out from behind the thick three, swiftly making their way to the hole just in case the bot had super hearing or something else ridiculous like that. The falling snow quickly covering their tracks.

When they got there, the pair peered inside. They were filled with both relief and shock at what they saw. Relief because Penumbra was fine, well, not fine, but he had no more injuries than the one he had on his leg. But they were shocked because the hedgehog was trapped in some sort of a metal cage with no latches to open.

Nummy pressed up all the way against the far side of the cage, probably due to fright. Quills were bristled and his whole body was curled up except for his leg that looked _horrible._ The middle of his thigh was mangled, flesh and muscle torn apart. Some bone was showing. Blood was pooling around him, staining fur and floor alike. At the duo's appearance, Penumbra slowly focused on them and let out a pained whine, "Vector…Charmy…"

"Hold on!" the kid shouted, hovering over to the cage, "We'll get you outta here!" the bee then started to kick the metal, but no matter how hard he hit, no progress was made. Vector came over and threw a couple punches; however, the only thing he got from that was throbbing knuckles. Penumbra, seeing them, hit the sturdy bars as well as hard as he could in his condition. Nothing changed.

"Dammit…" Vector muttered angrily, "This isn't working!"

"And I don't see any doors either!" Charmy whimpered, checking every side of the tough trap, "What are we going to do?!"

"I don't know!" the croc yelled in frustration, running a hand down his face. He glanced at Nummy and saw the pleading look the other had in his eyes, "Agh! Don't look at me like that! I'm tryin' here!" Vector closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. They couldn't break the metal with pure strength, so maybe they needed tools? Like a saw or something? Blowtorch? That was really the only option they had.

However, before he could say anything, there was an _insane_ amount of pain in his tail, "AAHHHH!" Vector screamed out as he glanced behind him, heart dropping at the sight of a mechanical jaw filling the hole in the wall, chomping on the croc's body part. His feet was then yanked from under him as he was dragged out of the structure.

"Vector!" Charmy's and Penumbra's voices rung out in surprise.

Electric shocks of agony were being sent throughout his system as Vector was lifted off the ground. He yelled out when he was airborne, and grunted when he crashed back to the cold ground, snow somewhat cushioning his fall. The croc panted harshly when he struggled to stand back up, trying with all of his might to not move his tail. Despite this, the pain was still like hell on earth. Vector didn't have the guts to check his wound, but he _felt_ the blood leaving his body, which was enough to make him panic.

"Vector! Are you okay?" said reptile blinked in surprise at the bee right next to him, hovering in his face with a worried expression.

"N-Nevermind me, why in the HECK are you out here?! You were safer back with…" feeling the ground tremble, he gazed up to see the robo-dog running their way. Vector began to hyperventilate, "W-We need to run NOW!"

The pair took off, away from the building, away from Penumbra, but they really didn't have a choice. They were nowhere as fast as the bounding canine, so they had to twist and turn to avoid the snapping jaws. Luckily for them, the dog wasn't the most agile thing around, skidding and sliding in the snow. But, unfortunately, they were getting tired. And on top of that, every step Vector took was _agony_. He was sure that his tail was broken somewhere.

Charmy had tried to carry Vector, but the croc was too heavy. The reptile then asked why in the world the bee would not just fly away; Charmy answered that friends had to stick together. Vector couldn't come up with a response to that as they rounded a corner, narrowly evading snapping jaws as the bot's momentum made it drift forwards a bit.

Vector was huffing and puffing, thinking that there was going to be no way out of the situation that they were in, but then Charmy pointed to an object to their left, "Is…Is that a car?"

The croc looked that way and almost yelled out in relief. He ran towards the armored buggy, hoping with everything he had that they could use it, "Close enough!" Vector hopped in without hesitation (holding in a pained cry when he landed on his tail), Charmy doing the same in the passenger seat.

The bee glanced behind them to see the dog regain its footing, "It's coming closer!"

"I hear ya, I hear ya!" Vector replied, trying to figure out how to start the dang thing. There was no key hole…so maybe there was a button somewhere? When he didn't find anything like that, Vector played with all the switches within sight and let out a happy laugh when the engine started up. The croc floored it, and the duo shot off through the snow.

Too bad the top speed of the buggy and the top speed of the mechanical mutt were the same. They weren't getting farther away. If anything, the bot was getting slowly _closer_ (Vector was just wishing that he was seeing things).

"Are we going to get Nummy now?" Charmy asked, keeping an eye on the mech behind them. When he didn't get an immediate answer, the bee whirled his head around to face Vector. The croc's brow was furrowed and his was clenching the steering wheel, seemingly ignoring the snowflakes hitting his face. A couple of seconds passed and Charmy had a bad feeling in his stomach, "We are, aren't we?"

Vector gritted his teeth before shaking his head, "No."

The bee's heart dropped, "Why?! We have to!" he reached over for the wheel, but the reptile stopped him with one hand, "We can't leave him!"

"HOW are we gonna get him out of there Charmy? Huh? The dog is going to be on our _butts_ if we do! If we get out of the buggy, we're done for!" the croc glanced down at the panels on the buggy and inwardly cursed when it showed 'empty' signed for all of the weapons it had, "And then that cage! We still won't able to break it!"

There were tears in the child's eyes again, "But…But we need to go get him!"

"I'm not arguing with you kid," Vector sighed out, feeling horrible, "We're not leaving just to leave, once this mutt is done chasing us-" _If it ever does,_ "-we can get some help someplace. We can't be THAT far from civilization right?" _Wishful thinking._

"…b-but what if he's gone when we come back?"

The reptile let out a humorless chuckle, "He's not going anywhere, I can promise ya that. The dog can't get to him and that building looks as abandoned as I don't know what. He'll be there." _Cold and bleeding…but there…_ Vector let out another sigh, _I'm so sorry man. Just…hold out for us._

Charmy didn't say anything else. He was backwards in his seat, sadly watching the dog chase after them. He choked down a sob as he noticed the building get smaller and smaller.

 _We're coming back for you…Don't be mad Nummy…Please._

* * *

Penumbra hissed as he leaned his head against one of the metal bars of his cage. His whole body was in agony, the waves of pain spreading out from his leg, overloading his brain with that torturing sensation. He couldn't move his leg at all. Or, didn't want to anymore. He did once…and it was _nothing_ he had ever experienced before. He couldn't even touch it. He couldn't do anything. Anything but wait.

He had watched Vector get dragged away by his (larger than usual) prey. He had watched Charmy follow the other out. He had been waiting for them to come back so he wouldn't have to worry. So he wouldn't feel bad about letting down the ones he was supposed to be protecting.

His blood had long since covered the cage floor.

He was beginning to feel dizzy.

He didn't know what was happening. This was like when he was fighting the one with the revolver. Penumbra placed a shaking hand on the mostly healed stab wound on his abdomen. But, he didn't have the rock this time. He couldn't heal. He couldn't get out. He couldn't see Vector and Charmy.

He could barely stay awake.

They needed him.

He needed them…

"…Ch-Charmy...? V-Vector…?"

There was nothing at first, but then:

"They are not here. No one is, except you and me."

Penumbra turned his head toward the sound of the voice, eyes widening a little at what they saw. He stuttered out the first word that came to mind, "S-Sonic?"

There was a pregnant pause, and before Nummy could blink, a hand was thrusted in between the bars and fingers wrapped around his throat. They squeezed. He tried to pry them away, but failed. Wheezing, unfocused maroon irises rose to take in his assailant.

He realized that he was wrong.

This wasn't Sonic.

He had made a mistake.

They looked the same…but it felt like the prey that took Vector.

When those cold and hard fingers clenched even more, Penumbra coughed and struggled to get the air he needed. He accidently moved his leg and his cheeks were instantly wet, the clear moisture joining the red he was wallowing in.

"Calling me _him_ is a fatal mistake. You are lucky the doctor would have more use for you alive than dead, Ultimate Lifeform."

Nummy's head was then smashed against the bars multiple times. By the fourth, his world had gone completely black.

* * *

"Yeah okay…This may be a little problem."

Shadow just huffed, sitting up in his hospital bed and observing as Rouge turned the energy-less emerald in her hands. She had slept for quite a while, a few hours, and the hedgehog let her. He knew that a full night's sleep wasn't enough to take care of missing five night's worth. Plus, he doubted he would get a coherent response out of her until she woke up by herself.

When she did finally rise from her nap, he practically shoved the deactivated gem in her face.

"Little?" The striped hedgehog crossed his arms, frowning over at her, "This is a major problem. I don't think time won't fix it now that it's in that condition. Something _caused_ this."

Rouge held the jewel up to her face to examine it closely, like she couldn't believe that one of her babies had actually stopped shining. She lowered it, "And it would happen the day the copy of Omega shows it," teal and ruby irises met, "There is seriously something fishy going on here hon."

Shadow scratched under his bandages, "And that something is going to be solved _immediately._ I don't like having my powers stripped from me."

The albino bat smirked at him, "You have plenty of experience in that, don't you sugar?"

"Don't remind me," the Ultimate Lifeform grumbled before he threw the white blanket off of him, "I've been in this place for long eno-"

He was cut off by a harsh knock at his door.

"Hey Shads, it's Sonic! Can I come in?"

Shadow inwardly sighed. Why was he back? The striped hedgie glanced toward the window showing Station Square. He was actually considering pulling a Rouge and exiting that way… He shook his head. If Sonic didn't find him now, he'd do it later. Might as well get it over with, "What do you want, Faker?"

"I'll take that as a yes!" the room's door slid open and the blue hero waltzed through, whistling a little tune. He waved and grinned at both Rouge and Shadow before bypassing them completely, heading towards the window. He opened it and poked his head out, searching for something.

Shadow wasn't even going to question it – no need to be dragged into the Faker's antics – but Rouge was more curious. She placed a hand on her hip, the emerald still gripped in the other, "Uh Blue? What are you-"

"Don't ask," Knuckles grunted out as he walked into the room and shut the door behind him. The echidna nodded a greeting at Shadow before focusing on that white Mobian, "You'll find out soon enough, bat-girl."

Rouge grinned at him, fluttering her way over to the guardian, "Look at those stress lines on your face. What's got you so worked up, _Knuckie?_ " she put a finger under the echidna's chin and lifted it up, grin widening at the reddening of the other's cheeks, "A stress-reliever for you is a bit overdue, don't you think sugar?"

Oh, Shadow forgot to mention this. Rouge toyed with Knuckles as well as himself. With the hedgehog, it was all play, but with the echidna…Shadow didn't know, and he didn't feel like figuring it out.

By the window, Sonic laughed, "Just stress lines? I thought I saw a couple grey spines the other day…"

"Oh ha ha," Knuckles grumbled out as he swatted Rouge away, cheeks returning to regular color. He was about to say something else, but then he noticed the Chaos emerald in the bat's grip. He growled softly, "So that one too huh…" he tried to grab for it, but the agent danced out of his reach, settling down in the chair with a smug smirk. He puffed in irritation.

"What do you mean by 'too'?" Shadow questioned, not liking the way that sounded.

"Exactly what you think it means," Knuckles said shortly, leaning on an adjacent wall. He gestured over to Sonic, "He's got the blue emerald. It looks _exactly_ like that one."

The striped hedgehog gritted his teeth. If two of the emeralds had mysteriously shut down, it's not farfetched at all to deduce that the rest of them had as well. Things just went from bad, to worse. This meant that he couldn't use his chaos powers until this was solved. If that was the case, Shadow needed to get to the bottom of this quickly.

"Do you know why?" he asked.

Knuckles cracked his namesakes, "The Master Emerald shut the blue one down, so I'm assuming that it took away every single ones' power. Why the ME did _that_ , well…" he cut his eyes over to the blue hedgehog, who was waving someone down. He focused on Shadow once again, "That's the question we need _you_ to answer."

Shadow blinked, not expecting that, "Me?"

Rouge was confused as well, "Shadow? Now how would he know? Care to share Knuckie? Cryptic does _not_ look good on you."

Before the echidna could decide whether to respond to that or not, there was a sudden commotion by the window that grabbed everyone's attention.

"What took you so long bud?" Sonic asked with a grin as Tails hovered in.

Said fox rubbed the back of his head and snickered, "The hospital is big you know, on the inside and out. And well, we kinda had to be careful so that no one noticed us."

"Why would you need to do that?" Rouge inquired, figuring that this was getting stranger by the minute.

"We?" Shadow simply questioned. Tails just smiled at him before stepping to the side, letting a _second_ yellow two-tailed fox into the room. The hedgehog and bat shared a glance, both seeing the mirror image and wondering if there was something in those cookies that was making them hallucinate.

That thought then ceased when one of the Tailses practically launched himself at Shadow, crying in sadness or happiness (the hedgehog had _no_ clue), and hugging him like there was no tomorrow. Shadow had tensed at first contact, but it seemed like the fox didn't get the hint. The hedgehog glanced around the room, and it seemed like Rouge was the only one surprised by this. Why would Tails clone a more…gushy version of himself? Why clone himself at all?

Shadow pushed the fox off of him and the kit got the message then. He rubbed his moist eyes before standing at the side of the bed, namesakes twitching behind him. "S-Sorry…" the kit sniffed, "I-I'm just s-so glad that you're a-alive…"

The Ultimate Lifeform stared at him for a moment before his eyes drifted to the others in the room. He frowned at how attentive they all were, like they were expecting something, "What's going on here? Why did you bring a clone of Tails?" In her chair, Rouge nodded in agreement while crossing her legs. If she wasn't filled in soon, she was going to lose it.

Sonic chuckled, finding this somewhat amusing. He wiggled his finger, "Nah uh…not a clone! Try dimensional double instead."

"Dimensional…double," Shadow had to resist running a hand down his face. The double part wasn't really surprising, he had seen similar with the young Faker, but what had they messed up to cause this? "What did you _do_?"

"Don't blame us," Knuckles narrowed his eyes, "All spoken," he gave the supposed twin a look, "evidence points to _you._ "

"How can I possibly-"

"Hey TT," Tails interrupted, smiling at his twin. _TT?_ Shadow thought, _I don't have to guess who gave him that nickname._ "How about you help jog Shadow's memory?"

The striped hedgehog was completely lost now, watching TT nod at Tails. They definitely knew something that he didn't. Something big.

The kit standing beside him wrung his hands nervously before taking a deep breath and looking Shadow in the eyes, "S-Shadow, I'm Tails. I was there w-when we infiltrated Eggman's base with Knuckles…"

The Ultimate Lifeform's breath hitched.

"When you fought S-Sonic in Station Square…"

His heart skipped a beat.

"When Espio drugged us…"

Again.

"When you yelled at us for cornering S-Sonic…"

Again.

"And when we all w-went to Station Square to stop Espio's invasion…"

And _again._

Rouge saw Shadow's jaw drop and she couldn't blame him, hers was all the way down to the floor right now. How in the hell did that double know all what happened in Shadow's head? Unless Sonic told him? No…she had a feeling in her gut that the speedster didn't get through all of the story. So how?

Team Sonic just watched the little interaction quietly. With TT naming off all of those events, Shadow reacting like that (which was funny to see, by the way) had to mean that the twin's words were true. The striped hedgie _had_ been there, _had_ witnessed all of those things. You know, _somehow_.

Shadow the hedgehog was a logical Mobian. He liked facts, data, concrete knowledge. He craved reason. Why did that man murder the other one? Because he wanted revenge. Why did that woman rob the store? She didn't have the money to buy it legally. How could Sonic run so fast? Chaos energy. Why could Shadow do the things he can? The result of genetically modified DNA plus Chaos energy. Facts. Data. Reason. It made _sense_.

Now this…this didn't make any sense.

And Shadow was not a happy camper.

"No…" the hedgehog shook his head, body unconsciously leaning away from the fox beside him, "This can't…no. It's impossible," Shadow glared at TT, ignoring how the other shrunk down, wanting his gaze alone be enough to make the illogical being disappear. When the kit was still there, Shadow closed his eyes and counted to ten. _This has to be a dream or something similar…because there is no way… How could I be there and here? How did Tails_ _ **get out of my head?!**_

"Sh-Shadow…" TT was playing with his namesakes, refusing to break eye-contact with the only anchor he had right now. He had to get through to him, "Please…I-It wasn't a dream. Everything that happened was _r-real_. I-I don't have any proof besides my w-words but _please."_

The Ultimate Lifeform opened his eyes and looked at the child, seeing nothing but genuine concern and hope. He…He couldn't find any lies in the fox's words. Shadow gave the kit a once-over, connecting the young one's stature and behavior to the one in his 'dream'. They were one in the same. The hedgehog looked over to Rouge to see how she was reacting to this. At his gaze, she just gave him a shaky grin before shrugging. Basically saying, 'This one's _all_ you'.

He guessed it was.

"Tails," he began and TT perked up, sapphires glistening, "I…believe you," Shadow looked up at the ceiling to avoid the bright smile sent his way, "But tell me this, who came with you?" At the moment, he didn't care about the how, when, what, or why. He cared about the _who._

Seeing where this was going, TT whispered, "E-Everyone."

"As in?"

"Everyone in o-our group, minus…" TT glanced at the floor, rubbing his eye with one hand, "Cream and her family didn't make it…"

Shadow snapped his head towards him, and everyone in the room felt the atmosphere change, "What?"

TT didn't look at him, "W-When you left…Espio's robots-"

" _Espio,_ " Shadow growled out with all of the hate in the world, teeth clenched, "Is. He. _Here_?"

TT didn't answer, frightened by the hedgehog's disposition (though he kind of expected it), but he didn't have to for the other fox in the room stepped up to the plate. Tails gave Shadow a guilty smile, "Yeah…he's here," before the Ultimate Lifeform could ask, he explained more, "Long story short, I um…picked him up from Vanilla's house – she and Cream were fine when I got there – and brought him to this hospital because he was really beat up," Shadow stared hard at him and Tails took a half step back, "Keep in mind that I didn't know who he was at the time!" he said, voice growing higher with every word.

All was silent for a moment until Shadow threw his legs over the side of the bed and stood up. He wavered only slightly before heading over towards the door, Knuckles sidestepping to let him pass without getting ran over.

Rouge was out of her seat in an instant, "And where do you think you're going?"

"Chameleon hunting," was all that was said before he left the room.

The remaining occupants were left staring at the open door, processing what just happened and what it meant for everything.

Then, Sonic nudged the guardian with his elbow, grinning, "Hey Knux, when all of this is over, I'll get you that grocery list, 'kay?"

Knuckles never wanted to punch someone harder in his life.

* * *

 **And…the truth is out! Wonder what's gonna happen when Shadow realizes that Espio isn't at the hospital anymore…?**

 **Next chapter…the appearance of a confused chameleon!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer- Nah…still don't own.**

 **Chapter 7- It's just a theory**

Knuckles took in a breath of fresh and cool air, letting it out in a relaxed sigh. His violet eyes were closed, enjoying the gentle breeze that weaved through his fur. He solely relished the way the wind felt against him; it was a like a comfortable blanket, encouraging him to take a nap then and there.

The echidna shook his head a bit, keeping the drowsiness at bay, before reopening his eyes, gazing lazily at the drifting clouds above, white and puffy and unburdened. He then switched his focus downward, looking past the railing he was safely up against. He had never been afraid of heights, but he could understand why one would have that phobia as he took in the numerous modern yet traditional buildings that were so small that they nearly blended together.

It was unbelievable how high up he was. Along with the city below him, there were many multicolored hot-air balloons flying in the air, only a couple exceeding the clock tower's height. A small smile grew on Knuckles' muzzle. The sight was just amazing. He slumped against the white railing more, wishing that he could stay up here forever.

This place would be a fantastic spot to take a breather from everything (not like he didn't do that all the time already). Too bad he never had been here before and couldn't remember the name. What was it? Lasagna? No…Spaghetti? That sounded a bit better. Kind of.

However…there was something constantly reminding him that he shouldn't waste his time standing up here on the tower. Something buzzing in the back of his head. Something that was taking a heck of a lot of effort to ignore. Something that was breaking the peaceful and serene atmosphere that was surrounding him.

"…can't stay here! Knuckles? Are you listening to me?"

That something was Amy.

"Sure," the echidna drawled out, keeping his eyes on the swaying balloons below.

The pinkette let out a heavy sigh, knowing good and well that the other wasn't. She continued wringing her hands nervously together, her back resting against the railing while looking up at the massive clock above them. Her fretful green irises then shifted over to focus on the other.

She bit her lip, "Look Knuckles, I know that you like the view and everything but-" Amy glanced down at the buildings below and shuddered. They had to be hundreds of feet off the ground; that didn't sit right in her stomach, "-we have more important things to focus on!"

There was still no sign that the echidna was listening, but she went on anyway.

"Like how's Station Square? Is it still _there_ anymore? Why did Penumbra bring us here? Why isn't _everyone_ here?" Amy rubbed her forehead in worry, "And where's Tails? I don't like the idea of him wondering around by himself…Espio was teleported too and with how…" her breath hitched as she thought about Shadow and Cream, trying hard to keep herself from breaking down again, "…with how _ruthless_ he is…I don't want Tails anywhere _near_ him."

The pinkette looked at her hands and regretted that she hadn't held on to that baseball bat she had. Those winds they had faced made it near impossible… "I just…I just want to find him Knuckles. And everyone else. Don't you?"

Knuckles seemed so impassive that Amy was actually surprised that he answered, "I do, Amy," he glanced at the hedgehog from the corner of his eye, and seeing her concerned state, faced her completely, folding his arms loosely across his chest, "It's just that I don't think we should go crazy doing it," he waved her off, "You're worrying too much."

Amy blinked, processing those words, until she began to see red, "I'm worrying _too much?!_ " She took a step closer to him, glaring up into those lazy amethysts, "My little _brother_ is out there by himself! Or potentially in the company of the chameleon who murdered some of our _friends!_ Did you forget about that?"

Knuckles could barely hold in a wince at that reminder. He had been repressing it, but he knew that it wouldn't be successful for long. He let out a small puff of air before leaning back on the railing, staring out at the horizon, "I didn't forget about it," he gave a quiet snort, "That's basically the only reason I'm considering searching for the others, so I don't have to wonder if…you know. Not sure if you realize this, but I'm used to riding solo. Not used to this group and leadership stuff."

"Well, I'm glad you've been trying something new," Amy huffed, clearly still riled up. She put her hands on her hips, "But what I don't get is why you're just a _little_ _bit_ concerned that any of our friends could be up against a serial killer!"

"If that," Knuckles said shortly, watching as a hot-air balloon went down for a landing, "Espio is barely in any condition to fight, Amy. He's banged up and his eye is completely unusable. And in addition to that, he doesn't have any weapons," he rose a brow at her, "I'm sure anyone can handle Espio, or at least run from him. Even Tails."

The pinkette deflated somewhat, seeing the logic in the other's words, "I guess you're right…It's just that he's family, and I don't want anything bad happening – wait a minute!" her eyes were wide, and Knuckles noticed that her pupils dilated in horror, "What about Sonic? He can't run! And…And _Omega!_ He's out there too!" Amy reached out and fisted the echidna's chest in panic, "That robot could be after Tails _right now!_ We can't stay up here any longer!"

He held his arms up in surprise, both at the pinkette's actions and what she had said. Amy had a point. The jerk was very hurt. Omega was still loose, armed and dangerous. Knuckles was going to have to calm down the other though; he really didn't want to deal with a hysterical hedgehog, "Calm down! I'm sure Sonic is being taken care of right now by a nice stranger. And what's the chances of Tails or anyone else being teleported to the same place the bot is?"

Amy glared, "The same chance of _us_ being dropped together!"

Knuckles sweatdropped, "Touché…" he then gently pushed her off of him, smoothening his fur, "Alright, I guess it's time to go then."

"Finall-"

"Stand on the rail."

Amy paused, "What?" Knuckles didn't speak again; he just gestured to the object mentioned. She took a half-step away from it, "Um why?"

"So I can glide ourselves down."

The pinkette shook her head vehemently before jabbing a thumb over her shoulder, pointing to a single door, "You can do that, but I'm just gonna take the stairs…"

Knuckles cocked his head in curiosity, "Don't you do this with Tails though, since he can fly? I figured that you'd be used to it. It'll take forever to get down the stairs."

Amy rubbed her arm, feeling unsure, "He does carry me! But, not that often, and not ever this high up!"

"There's a first time for everything. I won't drop you," Knuckles clenched his namesakes, "Super strength, remember?"

The pinkette stared at him for a long moment, a civil war occurring in her head, before facing the rail, "You better keep your promise…" she grumbled.

"I didn't promise you anything."

Amy glanced over to him to see the echidna grinning slightly. She rolled her eyes, "Funny," the hedgehog carefully climbed up and stood, holding her arms out to her side and urging herself to keep her balance. However, before she even had the chance to wobble, her wrists were grabbed and her feet were no longer on solid ground, "AHHHH!" she closed her eyes, not wanting to open them until she was safe again.

Knuckles looked askance at her when her scream made his eardrums throb, "If you'd stop shouting, that'll be great. You're causing a scene," he mumbled when he saw a couple in a balloon gaze confusedly at them.

Amy didn't listen. Knuckles didn't know if it was intentional, or she was truly too busy being terrified.

About a (tortuous) minute later, the pair was out of the air and at the base of the huge clock tower. Knuckles linked his hands behind his head, taking in all of the sights now that they were on ground level, while it seemed like Amy wanted to kiss the concrete they were standing on.

The echidna ignored her; she'll be over it soon enough, "So I guess we can start by asking the people here if they've seen anyone."

"Remind me to never do that with you again…" Amy straightened and evened out her dress, "And that's a good Plan A, let's do it!"

And so they did. The duo went around the huge city, asking the people living there if they had seen someone that the Mobians knew, even Espio. They didn't glean any useful information (except that the place was called Spagonia. Knuckles was close) until after about an exhausting hour into their search.

"Ah yes," a middle aged man began, glancing up from his phone, "I've seen a young bee around. He was at a café a block over with some others."

"Really?" Amy's tired expression brightened up when the man nodded, "Okay! Thank you so much!"

He smiled, "You're very welcome."

Amy barely heard that as she ran down the street, Knuckles catching up with her after waving goodbye to the stranger, "What are the odds…So who do you think Charmy's with?"

"Hopefully Tails!" she immediately answered, " _Please_ let him be there!"

 _Don't get your hopes up,_ Knuckles thought, but didn't dare say out loud.

They rounded a corner and both searched around until they found the café the man was talking about. The pair saw it at the same time, noticeable by the occupied tables on each side of the entrance. And true to the stranger's word, there was Charmy in one of the seats, apparently sleeping. He was drooling on the table. In a neighboring chair was Vector, hanging onto consciousness by a thread.

"They look…really tired."

Knuckles glanced at Amy, hearing the tone of disappointment in her voice. He didn't comment on that though, instead he said, "Yeah, maybe Chaos Control affects everyone differently…"

The pinkette smiled again, but it was nowhere the wattage it was a minute ago, "At least we found some of our group! Maybe it wouldn't be so hard finding the rest!"

The echidna hummed, beginning to leisurely walk toward the café, Amy in step with him, "Didn't the man say that Charmy is with some others? That would imply more than one…"

The hedgehog's green eyes brightened again and Knuckles deduced that she was going to be seriously unstable until she and Tails reunited again, "You're right! So where is he – er… are they? Maybe inside ordering something?"

 _She's shielding herself from another let down…not very well though,_ the red Mobian thought before languidly scratching his cheek, "Probably. Charmy and Vector will tell us once we-" Knuckles then tripped over his own feet and would've face-planted if Amy hadn't caught his arm. He would have to thank her later, _after_ he got over what he was seeing now.

He wasn't looking at the bee and crocodile anymore, oh no, he was focused on the _third_ Mobian who had strolled out of the café and sat at the last available seat at that table with no commotion. None from him and none from the two he was sitting with. _Espio_ was _there_. He seemed just as exhausted as the other two, but that didn't matter. Their number one villain was _there_ making seemingly lighthearted conversation with Vector!

What?!

And apparently, Amy was now seeing what he was seeing because of how tight the grip on his arm became.

"Knuckles!" she loudly whispered, wide-eyed and trembling. Knuckles couldn't tell if it was from fright or anger; Amy couldn't tell herself, multiple emotions were swirling around in her system at the moment, "That's…That's-!"

"I know…" the echidna lowly hissed, narrowing his violet irises at the chameleon. His mind was going haywire. He was trying to figure this scene out, but he couldn't. Why was Espio being friendly? Why was Vector being it back? And why in the _hell_ was that reptile _healed?_ The eye was back and everything! Was that even possible? Knuckles' only answer to that was Chaos healing, but who would…?

"He's…He's perfectly fine!" Amy cried out in disbelief. Knuckles hushed her before backpedaling until they were at the corner they just came from; they hid and peaked around it to see that the chameleon and croc were still talking. The confused duo ignored all of the wary looks they got from the citizens of the city. Amy clenched her teeth, fingers digging into her thighs as she squatted so Knuckles could peak over her, "What do we do? Why aren't they running _away_?" she ground out, her past experiences with the chameleon making her want to scream out in rage and anguish.

"I don't know…on both accounts," Knuckles responded, keenly aware of every move Espio made. His gaze then switched to a young waitress when she brought the trio a few drinks. Coffee, from the looks of it, and one soda. Vector took his with a relieved expression and so did Espio, nodding in thanks.

The waitress then placed the soda in front of the bee before walking away. Espio nudged the kid (Knuckles was waiting for a kunai to materialize out of nowhere) and gestured to the drink when the insect eventually woke up. Charmy wasn't alarmed about the chameleon's presence either; he just attacked his soda with fervor.

This was so _wrong._

"Are they brainwashed or something?" Amy glanced up at him for any kind of help, too bad his brain was malfunctioning just like hers.

Knuckles shook his head, "That's just ridiculous, Amy. Maybe they're being held hostage instead…"

The duo then heard Vector's tired laugh coming from their table. The croc was bellowing at Charmy's loud belch. The pink hedgehog frowned, "That's almost as bad as mine! Do they _look_ like hostages to you? It looks like they're having fun, for _some_ reason!" she then focused on Espio and saw him shaking his head in exasperation, but there was a small smile on his face anyway, "And have you noticed that Espio seems…different?"

"Yeah, I have," the soft expressions, the smiles, the lack of homicidal tendencies, Knuckles had totally noticed them. Unfortunately, that mixed up the puzzle pieces of this mystery even more instead of putting them together.

The hiding pair watched for a while – not having a clue what else to do (one sudden move and there could be blood spattered everywhere) – until the cold-blooded trio stood up from their seats. Knuckles cursed under his breath when Espio's gaze wandered; he pulled Amy back as he let himself be fully hid by the corner, hoping that they weren't seen. Amy didn't protest.

After a moment of holding their breaths, they peered slowly past the wall again to see the three sluggishly walking (hovering in Charmy's case) away.

Amy instantly knew what they had to do, "We have to follow them!"

Knuckles blinked, wondering if Sonic was really the only hedgehog that had something wrong with their psyche, "Are you insane? Since when is stalking a _ninja_ a good idea?"

"When everything started to make no sense!" Amy retorted, "We have to make sure this weird Espio doesn't do anything to them while staying on the down-low! We can wait until Vector and Charmy is alone or something to ask what in the heck is wrong with them! If we get found…" she tapped her chin, "then you can just go in swinging!"

Under normal circumstances, Knuckles would _never_ go along with a crude plan such as this – much less any plan. He'd be sleeping the day away – but because he couldn't come up with another option, he guessed that it would have to do.

"Alright…" he sighed, the duo emerging from their hiding place and following the trio, "But if we get spotted, you better grab a chair because I'm not fighting that psychopath by myself."

"Scared, Muscles?"

"No. Just _really_ unenthused."

"Uh huh, sure."

Stalking the oblivious trio was easier than Knuckles thought it would be. Espio, Charmy, and Vector never really veered from the main streets, talking to each other while finishing off their drinks, more energized than they were at the café. Whenever there was a threat that the echidna and his partner would be spotted, they would either hide behind a large mass of people or duck into an adjacent alleyway until the coast was clear.

They trailed the others until the three stopped in front of a massive building that looked like some kind of school. A sign nearby the place read 'Spagonia University', and that made Knuckles wonder why in the world the trio would need to be near the college. His question was soon answered when an older person – with a nose that was hard to miss – stepped out and met with the formerly exhausted group.

Knuckles and Amy crept closer to get within earshot, crouching behind a large potted plant so they wouldn't be seen.

"Ah! I'm glad to see that you've all made it!" the man smiled, making the skin around his large eyebrows – which was covering his eyes – crinkle.

Vector grinned back, "And right on time too! Man, that drive here was horrible," he then clasped his hands together, "But nevermind that! Let's talk business…"

"Oh…about that, youngin's…" the elderly man cleared his throat before smiling again, "My mystery has solved itself! How often does that happen?"

There was a pause, then, "Professor Pickle…What do you mean that it's solved already?" Espio asked, and Knuckles noticed that not only did the chameleon act differently, he talked differently as well. He was saner, of course, and his undertone held no hint of malice whatsoever, just muted curiosity. Knuckles and Amy glanced at each other, thinking the same thing, before refocusing on the conversation.

"Exactly that!" the professor chuckled, "It turns out the missing food I called about that kept disappearing from my lab was taken by no other than my lab assistant! He constantly cleared my stock of bread and cucumbers! He said that I had an unhealthy addiction, and that's why he threw them out! What nerve!" he sighed, "No matter, the reason for this meeting is to tell you that your work is no longer needed."

A longer pause, then, "What?" Charmy cried out, frowning, "So we came here for nothing? We didn't have to take that long ride? I could've been home playing games! You could've at least called or something!" he pouted.

Vector was shocked speechless at the professor's words, a single eye twitching.

Espio was the most composed, even though the ghost of a frown marring his lips gave away that he didn't like those turn of events either, "We…understand professor. Even though it's a bit disappointing that we've come this far to not work," the words 'or be paid' were unspoken but understood there, "I'm honored that someone as well-known as you know about us and our services. I appreciate you just for considering us for the job."

Back by the bush, Amy stared unbelievably at Knuckles, "Who is this guy and what did he do with the real Espio? Not that I'm complaining, but _wow._ " The echidna just put a finger to his lips, interested in the scene before them.

Pickle snickered again, "How could I not know of the great Chaotix and your work? You're the first detective agency that came to mind when my problem arose!"

"Really?" Charmy happily buzzed, over his disappointment, "Awesome! We've got good cred!" he flew around in a hyper circle, "Just watch, the President is gonna want us to do a job for him someday!"

Vector was still silent. Both eyes were twitching now.

"I'm sure he will!" Pickle agreed wholeheartedly with the kid before seeming to remember something. He began to dig into one of his pants pockets, "Before I forget…" he stepped up to Vector and held his hand out; the croc, after a moment, did the same. The professor dropped something into the awaiting hand, "Here's some compensation for your travel! I must return to my job now, have a nice day!" Pickle waved at all three of them before going back into the building, the door shutting behind him.

An even longer pause, then, "FIVE DOLLARS? HE JUST GAVE US FIVE _DOLLARS?_ "

Espio rubbed his temples, "Calm down Vector, it's something…"

"NO IT'S NOT! COMPARED TO THE HOURS WE'VE SPENT ON THE ROAD-!"

"Hey wait!" Charmy cut the fuming croc off, eyeing the bills in the other's hand, "Doesn't it take five dollars to go on a balloon ride?" Vector and Espio just stared at him. A smile stretched across the bee's face, "I think it is! Can we go on one? Can we can we? Flying that high by myself if _tiring!_ Please?!"

"Might as well spend it on something," Espio glanced over at Vector, "Go with him. It'll help blow off some steam-"

"Now tell me, how is floating in the air going to get us the money we rightfully DESERVE?!"

"…My point exactly."

Vector glared at the chameleon before sighing, "Okay okay, maybe I need to calm down a lil' bit," he began to march off, "C'mon kid. We'll meet up back at the café, 'kay Es?"

"Right," Espio nodded as they ambled off.

Knuckles and Amy watched them go as well, both glad that their plan actually worked out. All they had to do now was go find Vector and Charmy without running into Espio. But, before they did that, there was an important question that needed to be answered.

"Chaotix…That name sounds familiar, like _really_ familiar…" Amy muttered, trying to think where she had heard it from.

"That's weird, because it sounds like that for me too," Knuckles said, pulling desperately at his memory until something popped up:

" _In my world, you two own a detective agency, the Chaotix."_

" _You had a third and fourth co-founder. Mighty the armadillo, however he had moved away from what I was told, and…Espio the chameleon."_

The echidna's breath hitched, and Amy heard it, "What did you remember?"

"Knuckles, Amy," the pair addressed froze when they heard their names uttered from the lips of the person they should be avoiding. Green and violet eyes slowly drifted over to the chameleon standing at their side, arms crossed with his brow furrowed. Again, there was no hostility, just irritation, "What are you two doing here? And why were you following us all this time?"

The crouching duo took their time standing up. Amy did because she thought any sudden movement would be the return of a murder-happy Espio. Knuckles did because he was analyzing the other, not wanting to make a hasty decision.

"Well?" Espio prompted, looking between the two.

Amy then decided that she didn't like being trapped. She glared at him, "Get _away_ from us you murderer!" she yelled out, getting the attention of any passers-by and making Espio horribly confused, "Step any closer and you'll be taking a plant to the face! A heavy one at that!" the hedgehog grabbed the bush, ready to attack at any moment. It was all a front however. She was terrified.

Espio looked slightly worried, for himself or for Amy, Knuckles didn't know, "What are you talking about? I'm not-"

"Yes you are!" the leaves of the bush rustled, "You've killed-"

"Wait Amy…" Knuckles interrupted, getting in between of the girl and the chameleon. Espio's gaze snapped to him, swirling with nothing but confusion, "Just wait a second. I have a theory, a crazy one, but a theory nonetheless," both the reptile and hedgehog stared at him, wondering what in the heck was going on.

"A theory? Just…Just punch him Knuckles!"

Espio blinked, " _Punch_ me?"

"Ignore her for a moment," Knuckles breathed out, tense and not believing that he was having a civil conversation with someone who had killed his friends. What a day, "Just answer me this. How would you describe me? Be honest." Wow, he was telling a psycho to be honest. He _really_ needed a nap.

The ninja was silent for a moment, judging, before finally answering, "You're strong, determined, stubborn to a fault sometimes, protective," alarms sounded off in Knuckles' head, "a friend."

"What do I protect? Be specific."

Espio cocked his head and frowned, "You're acting strange. You and Amy."

"Answer the question…please."

"…You protect your friends, the Master Emerald, and Angel Island of course. You're usually on it, except for today…"

There it was. The bombshell.

Knuckles let out an explosive sigh, feeling more tired than he had been in a long time, "You're the wrong one…"

"Knuckles?" Amy let go of the plant and went to the echidna's side, "Are you okay? What's going on?"

The red Mobian ran his hands down his face, "He's the wrong Espio."

"The wrong…" she shook her head, "What? There's only one of him!" she gestured to the chameleon who was getting more and more lost as time went on, "Yeah, he's acting different but that doesn't mean-"

"In this situation, it does," Knuckles said, and began to explain at her befuddled expression, "Remember when Shadow was telling us about his home world?" Amy nodded, and Espio's eyes widened, _What is he talking about?_ "He mentioned the Chaotix, a detective agency that Vector, Charmy, and _Espio_ ran."

The pinkette gasped and took a step back, a hand over her mouth, "No…No it can't be! We can't be in his world!"

Knuckles swallowed thickly, nodding, "I…think we are."

"But how…why…" tears began to well up in Amy's eyes, "Do y-you think Tails is here too? O-Or somewhere else?"

The echidna glanced up at the sky, "I can't answer that question for you Amy."

Espio just stood there, observing as the pinkette sobbed and as the guardian mumbled to himself. He had no idea what was going on, not one clue. A different Espio? Shadow's home world? There was something off about those two – besides the obvious – put he couldn't put his finger on it. It was subtle, but it was there.

However, before he could delve into it more, a phone began to ring nearby. Realizing that it was his, Espio took the cell out of the cuff of his glove and answered it, "Hello?"

" _Am I reaching the Chaotix detective agency?"_

He frowned, "Yes, yes you are. May I help you?"

" _I'm calling from Station Square hospital to inform you that Espio the chameleon has been admitted due to horrific injuries. Is it possible for you to be here when he is done with his procedures this afternoon?"_

Espio went stock-still, glancing over at Knuckles and Amy who were paying no attention to him, "I'm sorry, but we're out of town at the moment. We won't be back in until late tonight. We will visit as soon as we can tomorrow."

" _Okay. He should be ready to leave by then."_

"Thank you for letting us know."

" _You're welcome."_ The line went dead. The ninja slowly lowered the phone before staring back at the stressed out duo. It took a minute, but both of them eventually felt his gaze and met it.

Espio took a deep breath, "Tell me everything."

* * *

"Why isn't he _still here?_ "

Shadow was about to blow up, he could feel it. And apparently everyone else could too because the people in the reception room stood as far away as they could from the Ultimate Lifeform. The receptionist, the one being addressed, couldn't really go anywhere, so she was halfway hiding under the desk.

"I-I don't know sir. H-He wasn't supposed to be given t-the choice to be released until t-tomorrow…"

The striped hedgehog bared his teeth and slammed his fist down on the desk, " _When_ did he leave then?"

The woman squeaked, crouching lower, "I-I don't…"

"Alright hon, enough is enough," Rouge strolled over and put herself between Shadow and the cowering worker. The bat scoffed as she slowly but surely guided the hedgehog toward the front doors, "The hospital already house enough people as is, no need to add a heart attack patient to that number."

Once outside, Shadow attempted to rein in his anger, but not before punching the side of the building, feeling the sting in his knuckles but not caring about it. The Mobians who had occupied his room were now surrounding him in a loose circle. The civilians walking by gave the two Tailses confused glances, but the group didn't care anymore. There were concrete doubles running around in the world; the masses were going to have to get used to it.

Shadow clenched and unclenched his fists as his rage began to climb down, "You don't get it Rouge. _None_ of you get it, except," he glanced over to TT at his left side, "The reptile _killed_ me dammit. _Me._ And Cream. And Vanilla. And an uncountable number of innocents. He's more than dangerous."

Sonic, for once, wasn't smiling, "I hear ya loud and clear Shads, but think about it, your Espio's all drugged up and basically a one-armed pirate. He seriously couldn't have gone far," he then grinned, "Definitely not _my_ version of far."

Shadow glared at him, not amused at all, "You're missing the point _Faker._ I don't give a damn about what condition he's in," he focused on Rouge, taking in her semi-bruised neck and her ankle brace, "He could be anywhere, doing _anything_ , by now because I'm sure that he had _help._ "

"Help?" Knuckles furrowed his brow, "Who in the hell would help that maniac?!"

"The chameleon's Omega," the Ultimate Lifeform hissed out, and Rouge gaped, realizing what Shadow was getting at, "That robot was in the city earlier; he attacked Rouge."

"That _thing_ got to her?"

Rouge smirked at Knuckles after getting over that little shock, seeing him search her body and finally making a connection with her foot, "Don't worry Knuckie. None of the goods were permanently damaged," she ended with a wink.

The echidna wasn't the only one who blushed. TT thought that this was so…weird. All of the 'bro's and fist-bumps were replaced with…well…breasts and flirtation. The bat being a girl was going to take a while to get used to.

Tails ignored that whole interaction, "So you're saying that Espio could've gotten away with Omega?" Shadow nodded. The fox rubbed his forehead, "It's still so hard to wrap my head around all of this…I mean, how did all of the doubles get here in the first place? It makes no sense!"

That was the question, wasn't it? Shadow turned towards TT, crossing his arms, "Tails," two pairs of yellow ears perked up, but one set relaxed when they weren't the ones supposed to be listening, "What happened after I 'died'? Did Espio attack you?" _And how did you escape pretty much unscathed if he did?_

TT lowered his gaze to the ground and fidgeted with his hands, "W-Well, when you r-ran off, w-we took out th-the rest of the r-robots…You k-know that C-Cream and her family…" he sniffed, not wanting to say it, "P-Penumbra and R-Rogue carrying S-Sonic rejoined with us after th-that…"

"Rogue was carrying Faker?"

Instead of TT, Sonic nodded, figuring that he could help the kit out, "Yeah, he was shot by Omega but still alive. And then TT told us that Rogue sent Penumbra after you, that he Chaos Controlled Espio back to where the they were, that Nummy was hurt and Espio had his eye torn out or somethin', yeesh," the hedgehog stretched a bit, "And then uh…

"There was this darkness swallowing up the city," Knuckles continued, anxious now that there was a chance that the evil Espio could be causing major trouble somewhere, "Not wanting to fall into it, they tried to get Penumbra to take them to the ARK. But _apparently_ that didn't work."

"They ended up here instead, huh," Rouge put a hand on her hip, pursing her lips, "I never got this side of the story sugar."

"I didn't know either," Shadow muttered, actually more surprised that the others knew that than the events themselves. Yes, it was…disconcerting that the other Sonic was out there the way he was (Shadow was sure that _someone_ had found and helped him), but something else was more prominent at the moment. He focused on TT, "You told them what happened?" the kit nodded slowly, and Shadow sighed, " _Everything_ that happened?" the fox nodded again.

When he reunited with the other Faker (he knew it was going to happen eventually), hell would surely be risen.

"What're ya talkin' about Shads?" Sonic asked, slightly lost now, and he knew that Knuckles and Tails were as well. Rouge looked as if she didn't know if she knew or not.

Shadow ignored him, continuing to speak to TT, "So you all came here because Penumbra teleported you." _Maybe he tried too hard to get to the ARK and jumped dimensional planes instead?_

"Y-Yeah…"

The striped hedgehog pinched the bridge of his nose, _Great, so the one who did it can barely understand us and is probably attacking some poor unsuspecting town right now. Fantastic._

"I'm glad that you've learned all of this Shadow, but we already knew about it," Tails' namesakes swirled around him as sapphires met with rubies, "My question was actually referring to how they jumped out of your head. It's not physically possible!"

"And neither is being two places at once," Sonic opened his mouth and Knuckles glared, "No! No matter how _fast_ you are, you just can't!" the speedster stuck his tongue out and the echidna was tempted to yank it.

"It is impossible…" Shadow said aloud, gears turning in his mind, "…physically at least," he glanced over at Rouge, "Tell me exactly what happened during the incident that seemingly started all of this."

The bat braced herself to relive that memory; she didn't want to, but she'll do it for him, "I don't know why you want me to do it again hon, but…alright. We were fighting Eggman's robots and we somehow missed one. It hit you so hard that-" Rouge sighed. It was harder than she thought it was going to be, "Blue picked you off the ground, and the red Chaos emerald you had went on the fritz-"

"There," Shadow interrupted, "It happened there."

"What happened there?" Sonic tilted his head.

"Whatever that caused this," the Ultimate Lifeform racked his brain, "The Chaos emerald did something," he closed his eyes and folded his arms in front of his white-furred chest. _The emeralds can turn thoughts into power…_ Shadow opened them again and regarded the entire group, "I have a theory. All of you didn't want me to die, correct?" All of them – sans TT, who was shocked that the hedgehog had actually died _twice_ and was still standing there – nodded like the answer was obvious.

"And I was dead or very much close to it when Faker picked me up?" There was nodding again. The Ultimate Lifeform let out a puff of air, "Well, I think the emerald was doing its job then," before anyone had a chance to speak up, he continued, "It can turn thoughts into power. Faker, you're second only to me with strong connectivity to the emeralds. When you got in close proximity to it, your thoughts, along with everyone else's comparatively weaker ones, encouraged it to save me as well. And since my physical body was already dying…"

"You've got to be kidding me," Knuckles deadpanned before throwing his hands in the air, "So you're implying that the emerald sent your _mental state_ somewhere else! That's just…just-!"

"Impractical and unlikely, I know. But it's the only theory I've come up with."

"And I don't think…that it's necessarily _wrong_ either," Tails pipped up, "I believe that's right because it connects with TT's world," he glanced at his double, "When Shadow died there, the land basically started to fall apart. If the emerald sent Shadow's mind there just because he was dying _here_ , then when that was no longer the case, the gem brought him back."

Sonic scratched his head, "But I don't get it. Why would an entire dimension disappear just because Shadow peaced out? He couldn't have been _that_ important, right?"

"That's the thing, I think he was," Tails started to pace back and forth, "I'm guessing that the emerald didn't have the power to actually send Shadow to someplace entirely different from our own."

"So how did he get there sugar?" Rouge questioned, her mind not wrapping around this at all.

The kitsune kept moving, "The emerald…I guess the emerald sensed something that could fly as an 'alternate dimension' that it didn't have to break through multiple planes of time and space to get to," he stopped and focused on Shadow, "Your dreamscape."

Now it was time for Shadow to get on the confused train as well, "My dreams? But I've never dreamt of-"

"There are thousands of dreams that you've probably had that you don't remember," Tails cut him off and smiled apologetically at the glare he received, "But anyway, I'm assuming that the emerald somehow grasped onto those and twisted them to make a world you could go to. It must've still taken a lot of power, which is why it shut down. It's not _that_ surprising, since we basically figure out new things that the emeralds can do every other week."

"But make a whole new world out of Shadow's subconscious? That's crazy!" Knuckles commented, still dubious about this.

"But it wasn't _really_ real Knux," Sonic nudged the echidna, "Since the whole place went caput when Shads came back."

"Real enough that the doubles there escaped!" the echidna countered, gesturing to TT.

Tails nodded, "Both of you are right. The world would be fake enough to disappear, but real enough that its occupants could live without it," the kit then chuckled, rubbing the back of his head, "But that's just a theory based off of yours, Shadow. It doesn't have to be right…"

The Ultimate Lifeform stared for a minute before shrugging, "It's completely possible."

Rouge tossed up the red gem in her hand and caught it again, "I believe it, especially because it makes sense – more or less – and it's the only thing we can think of at the moment."

"Hey, stranger things have happened!" Sonic said with a snicker before tapping this foot, "So now that we've gotten that takin' care of, it's time to catch us a chameleon! Can't be too hard, right?"

Tails deadpanned, "Those two statements are basically paradoxical."

"He's had a _huge_ head start," Knuckles added.

"And don't forget that he can turn invisible, hon," Rouge contributed.

Sonic held his hands up, "I get it guys, no need to jump down my throat! Sorry for tryin' to get things rolling 'round here!"

Shadow rolled his eyes. He wished that his past self had just declined Tails' invitation for dinner all those days ago. His life would have been a lot less complicated than it was right now, "If you'd wait a second to _think_ for once in your life Faker, then no one would have to correct you."

Sonic put a hand on his hip, "Don't feel so high and mighty faker! You've made hasty decisions before!"

The Ultimate Lifeform scoffed, "Really? Name one."

The blue hero grinned, "Oh I don't know, deciding to destroy the earth and all who lived on it because of a little misunderstanding?"

Rouge giggled while TT's mind was reeling. Shadow did _what?_

Said hedgehog turned his head and scowled, "That doesn't count."

"Heh, suuuurrrre it doesn't."

"Moving _on_ ," Shadow growled out before calming back down, as calm as he could be in this situation, "Just looking blindly for him isn't going to benefit us in any way. He's smart."

"What do _you_ suggest we do then?" Knuckles asked, "You know him the best." Which was strange to say. Usually, the echidna was the one to know the chameleon, or any of the Chaotix, the most. But now, he was glad that he didn't have any experiences with the dangerous ninja.

"He has an unshakeable drive," Shadow provided, "Espio won't stop to get what he wants. And right now, he – wait," he whirled his head toward Tails, "Does he know that I'm alive?"

The kit grinned sheepishly, "Yes…But he doesn't know where you are! So that's a plus?"

Shadow let out a harsh sigh. Well there goes that potential surprise attack if they ever got that far, "If he did know, he would've attacked the hospital. So yes, it's a plus," he then went back to his original train of thought, "Espio will do anything to complete his objectives. And currently…I'm sure one involves taking out me and everyone associated."

The atmosphere was tense.

"Everyone associated…" Rouge mumbled out, "So that means those he saw with you in his world, and us too?"

"I-If he w-would know the d-difference…" TT quietly spoke up.

"Right!" Sonic smiled at the kit, somewhat let down when the cub glanced away from him, "He doesn't know that he's even in another dimension, does he? We can use that!"

"Not for long," Shadow countered, "Again, he's smart. It won't take him long to figure out that something's off."

"Especially since he's seen Cream and Vanilla already," Tails sighed, "I do remember him looking all confused when I picked him up from there earli-" his body then promptly froze up, "Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no!"

The kit was freaking out; Sonic went over to put his hands on the other's shoulders, "Tails! Calm down bud! What's gettin' you all riled up?"

The fox ignored him completely in favor of catching Shadow's attention, who was looking over with a curious frown, "Shadow! Cream was part of your group in the other world! And…And Espio knows where our Cream lives!"

Shadow swore that his heart _stopped_.

Not a millisecond later, the hedgehog was off. He weaved through the crowds, going as fast as he dared until he reached Station Square's city limits. By that time, the Faker had caught up to him. They locked gazes, "Prepare yourself for what you might see, Faker." _If Espio has been there…then it won't be pretty._

The blue hero just gave him a twitchy grin, "My reaction isn't exactly at the top of my 'Important things' list right now Shads."

Shadow didn't say anything else, breaking the sound barrier once they escaped the city. Sonic did so as well.

They made it to the Rabbit's home in record time. Shadow was only thrown for a loop for a little bit since the house wasn't the mansion he had seen in days past. He stopped caring about the dainty home quickly when he saw Vanilla laying down face first in her front yard.

"Vanilla!" Sonic shouted out in alarm, seeing the downed rabbit as well. The hedgehog duo sped over to her, crouching at her sides. The hero was panicking, his breaths becoming faster and shorter.

Shadow turned the woman on her back, noting that there wasn't any blood anywhere. There was just a bruise on the side of her head. He didn't dare feel relieved yet. He placed two fingers on her neck to feel for a pulse; there was one. He then glanced at her chest to see it rising and falling steadily, "She's alive, just unconscious."

"I'm glad," Sonic didn't look any happier than he did a minute ago. The hero gulped thickly as he gazed back at the house. Its door was wide open, "I'm going to check inside for Cream," Shadow didn't get the chance to warn the other about sneak attacks before the speedster ran inside.

It was silent for a moment until a loud, "Oh _Chaos!_ " came from inside. Shadow stood back up and was about to rush in there, but before he could do that, Sonic came running back out with a small body in his hands. He approached Shadow, letting him see. The Ultimate Lifeform let out a shaky breath at the sight. It was Cheese, and he was limp. The Chao's neck was severely broken, his beady unseeing eyes wide with terror, "He's _dead_ Shadow! He's…" Sonic ran a trembling hand through his quills, "And Cream's gone! She's not in there! Do you think-"

Shadow nodded, blood boiling, "He has to have her."

"Th-This guy…" Sonic bit the inside of his cheek, just now understanding the gravity of this situation, "He's a _monster._ "

"Now you know what I have been dealing with," he responded coldly, looking back down at Vanilla. Shadow bared his teeth. _Shit. Looks like running blindly is the best idea after all,_ "Faker, you stay here and watch over her until the others come. Then split up to search for Cream. I'm going now."

Emotional emerald eyes widened, "But-!"

Shadow was already gone.

* * *

 **Don't hate me…**

 **Next chapter…the point of view of a kidnapper!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer- Still no.**

 **Chapter 8- Cry me a river**

The ruins of Westopolis were a sorry sight. Its once high-reaching and glorious skyscrapers were now nothing but leaning towers of debris, most not half the height they were before the alien attack. The roads were barren and broken; any tires navigating it would get ripped to shreds by the jagged asphalt and shards of glass everywhere. It had been a while since the invasion, but no cleanup crews had been around to even start the process. Vehicles were scattered out in the open, windows broken, metal bent, and wheels deflated. There seemed to always be a thick cloud cover over the once thriving city which blanketed the place with gloom.

There were no current residents in the city, its only occupants being dusty rats and the occasional stray dog that would wander through and leave, quickly figuring out that the only food there were the small dirty rodents that were near impossible to catch. Life was a rare sight inside of Westopolis.

But underneath it however…

There was a vast series of rooms and hallways deep underground, lit by bright fluorescent lighting that made it seem like the place wasn't built where sunlight could never shine. Technology was everywhere, whirling, running, and beeping, the constant hum becoming permanent background noise. Some of it were moving around, casting dark contrasting shadows on the white floors. They were patrolling up and down, watching out for anything or any _one_ who would disturb the – for lack of a better word – peace below the surface.

Traversing one particular hallway however, was no machine. It was a man walking with purpose, his steps echoing against the metal walls of the unseen structure. His dark glasses glinted in the artificial light as he turned a corner. He nearly had run into a guard robot, but the mech side-stepped in a timely manner so its master didn't falter in his stride.

Eggman paid little attention to it, focused on much more important things than functioning scrap metal. Not five minutes ago, he had a message on his communicator that made him put a pause on any work he had been buried in and leave his office. But not before grabbing a little something. The doctor glanced down at the remote control in his hands. His lips twitched up in a small smirk. He loved having new weapons to try out. An ultimate one at that.

He knew leaving extra activated traps around his old bases would come in handy.

Now, Eggman knew that it wasn't Shadow. The doctor's keen eye detected characteristics while the doppelganger was out cold from anesthesia. After fixing up the other's mangled leg as best as he could (no one wanted a broken tool), Eggman scanned the being, seeing that he had all the attributes that Shadow had plus more. Exceptional sight, hearing, and smell…

Eggman didn't know who or – if it came down to it – _what_ Metal Sonic had brought to him, but to the doctor, his new captive was a glorified version of the Ultimate Lifeform, and he was going to milk this for all it's worth.

Metal locked his opticals on the rotund human when he turned onto the hallway the robot was in. He stared at the man as he came closer until they stood side-by-side. Metal nodded in greeting; Eggman ignored him in favor of looking through the large one-way mirror in front of them, "You say that he's showing signs of waking up?"

Metal focused his gaze on what was calling the doctor's full attention as well. The hedgehog in question was sprawled out on the cold floor of the spacious room he was dumped in after surgery. One of the striped Mobian's bare feet, which was connected to heavily bandaged leg, was twitching, along with his ears and nose.

"Affirmative. He should be conscious in less than forty-two…forty-one…forty seconds," glowing red eyes then shifted over to the man once more, identifying the object in the human's hand. His metallic fingers subtly clinched, "I see that you are going with that plan after all, doctor."

Eggman glanced askance at the intelligent mech, detecting the annoyed tone underneath the robotic monotone in the other's voice, "Of course I have! It is _ingenious_ after all!" he faced Metal fully, narrowing his eyes, "Is there a _problem_ you want to address? Are you questioning me? After I put you back together? Because you got _destroyed_ by that blue rat again? A _younger_ one at that?"

Metal's eyes flashed dangerously when his systems provided him with that disgraceful memory.

The doctor laughed mockingly, "Oh ho ho! Yes, you failed your mission to take down Sonic because a _kid version_ of him did it to you first," Eggman pointedly turned back to the mirror, bringing the conversation to a close, " _Don't_ make me regret putting you back together. It would be a shame to shut you down only after being activated for a day."

Smartly, Metal didn't reply with one of the many snappish retorts he had in his database. He simply faced back forward, opticals blazing with artificial defiance. The plan wasn't ingenious; it was inefficient, time-consuming, and _unnecessary._ Metal didn't favor this plan as he did another. One where the tool turned into a hostage. One where that fleshy and breakable hero would try to rescue the him, whether he knew the abductee or not. One where Metal could tear that blue-furred nuisance into bleeding pieces as soon as possible.

But instead, the doctor chose to _use_ the prisoner, and there was the chance that the striped one would be the cause of the irritating rodent's death, not by Metal's own fingers. That would not do. Not at all. However, to prevent himself from being deactivated and possibly becoming nothing but parts, he kept his internal musings to himself.

"Ah, exactly how you predicted!" Eggman bellowed excitedly – Metal didn't make the mistake of thinking that the doctor had forgotten about their previous conversation – as he watched the hedgehog on the other side of the wall slowly gain consciousness. The blue mech observed as well, focusing on every movement. The black-furred being lethargically blinked his eyes open before they began zipping around everywhere when their owner didn't recognize the setting. The hedgehog then stood shakily up on all fours, the wince he made when he put weight on his healing leg did not go unnoticed.

"Doctor," Metal started, "Tell me, how are you going to fight with a broken weapon?" Irrational, this plan was that as well.

"A gun that can't shoot is a useful bludgeon," Eggman said as he stroked his mustache, "It doesn't matter if it's broken or not; it still can be used for a purpose. But that doesn't matter here!" cue another one of the doctor's throaty laughs, "Because this tool can heal!"

Metal was not impressed, quite the opposite actually, "That takes _time_ doctor. If we-"

"I've heard enough out of you!" Eggman glared, cutting him off, "If I hear one more word of you challenging me, I might treat you like an _actual_ enemy," when he received no response, he huffed, "Now look what you've done! I was in a good mood coming over here!" Eggman then blinked, "What's this?" he zeroed in on the hedgehog inside to see him stalking toward where the duo was. His ears were trained in that direction. When he got close enough, the striped one reached out and stroked the glass, brow furrowed.

Metal made the connection immediately, "He is hearing us, but is seeing his reflection. The two senses sending him different messages are confusing him. This is signaling lower intelligence levels."

"Hm, not that low though, I'm sure that the blue rodent would be confused for a couple of moments. But it's still interesting…It's time to go in," Eggman then promptly strolled over to the sliding door to the right of them, placing his hand over the green scanner. There was a soft ding before the slick metal opened, the doctor entering with Metal swiftly following.

There was an immediate change in atmosphere as the door closed. Two pairs of eyes snapped in the direction of the hedgehog when guttural growls began to bounce off the enclosed walls. The Mobian was now crouched low to the ground, quills bristled, teeth bared, and muscles tensed. His wild maroon irises were watching them too.

"He's more…feral than I suspected. Metal," said robot glanced at Eggman for only a second before locking gazes with the hedgehog again, like if he took his eyes off the other for too long, the striped one would pounce, "You told me that he spoke to you. Why do I have trouble believing that?"

The mech would have rolled his optics, "He did. I would not lie about that. While that is true, however; he only did utter one word," the mammal's ears twitched at Metal's voice, but there was no comprehension in the hedgehog's expression. Unexpected, "It is likely that he is not understanding us at the moment, doctor."

"Really? Now, I believe that wholeheartedly! Let's test it," Eggman took a _very_ daring step forward, and Metal's servo's tensed, ready to launch, when the snarls got louder and those irises raged like wildfire. Claws strained against the floor, leaving marks. The man ignored all of this and smiled, twirling the remote control with his fingers, "Who are you?"

There was no answer.

Trying again, wanting to make sure that the rodent wasn't just stubborn, Eggman pointed at the mammal with his unoccupied hand, foolishly stepping forward once more. The hedgehog's ears were now flat against his head, "I said, who are you?" he repeated slower than the first time.

Metal could see the other getting more wound up. Despite that however, the Mobian blinked in understanding before growling slowly out, "Penumbra."

The duo shared a look. He could understand somewhat then. Eggman continued, "Penumbra, quite a fitting name actually! Ho ho! Must you be so tense? You're not in any danger here…" The striped Mobian's disposition didn't change in the slightest. If anything, it was becoming more rage-filled. Metal readied his boosters. Eggman, seeing that his words were not affecting the other, trudged right on, "Fine _rodent_ , lock up your muscles if you want to! Won't bother me. But enough of that, I have another question. Do you know who Shadow-"

The coil snapped, and Eggman wasn't anywhere near ready to react to the sharp claws, shearing teeth, and bloodthirsty red eyes pouncing his way.

Metal was.

His boosters blasted and he was in the air. The robot pulled back a fist, throwing it right at Penumbra's abdomen when he got close enough, no doubt leaving a sizable bruise there. The striped hedgehog was launched back with a pained cry, bouncing hard on the polished floor before righting himself, nails producing a high-pitched sound as they slid.

The metallic Sonic floated in front of Eggman, fists clenched, watching Penumbra watch him. The hedgehog was holding his stomach in discomfort, face twisting from hurt to hateful; the complete and utter loathing was clear as day.

However, before Penumbra could lunge again, starting the inevitable brawl, the mammal howled out in a kind of agony Metal had never heard before. It was primal, obscenely loud, and from the core. The floating Sonic merely observed as the striped one collapsed on the floor, convulsing violently as the screams went on. There were very visible lines of electricity jumping from quill to quill, making every single muscle contract. Those feral eyes were clenched shut, and tears were freely flowing from them, puddling on the ground.

Metal just stared blankly before glancing back at Eggman, who was smirking victoriously, pressing one of the buttons on the control. The doctor's gaze shifted from the tortured hedgehog to the robot, "There is no explanation you can give me that says that having an embedded shock device is _not_ a great plan!"

"He can get used to it," the mech responded over the howls.

"That's where you're wrong!" Eggman nearly singsonged, overly ecstatic about his invention, "Because I made it so it's a different experience each time!" the man then let go of the button. Penumbra stopped convulsing, but he was still twitching, tears running down his face, and drool dripping out of his mouth. The human turned on his heel and went over to the door, scanning his hand once more, "Controlling him will be a breeze! This will surely end in my victory!"

Metal flew behind him, not giving Penumbra a second glance. The door shut when the duo passed the threshold, "If you say so, doctor."

Eggman whirled around on him and the mech stopped moving. Red opticals were searching those dark spectacles, feeling the glare aimed at them. He had made a mistake in saying that.

The human let out a harsh puff of air, "I'm tired of your opposition, your attitude, your overall _presence._ I need a break from you, already," it was silent for a moment, the only noise being the quiet hum of Metal's jetpack. Eggman took another breath, "I need to find you a job to do since I'm going to be busy outlining my steps to success and you will only be a distraction. You and your whining."

Metal didn't whine. He pointed out the major flaws of something and kept bringing it up until it was fixed. That wasn't whining, "I can go find and ki-"

"No! You will only fail in getting him, and you'll probably find a way to let it slip that we have a secret weapon!"

The robot reasoned through not killing Eggman then and there. He had a primary objective. Killing that azure pest. The doctor could help him in doing so. This prisoner may be a problem, but Metal could deal with him later if he got in his way. Eggman couldn't die, not yet. He had some use.

"…What is the mission you are giving me, doctor?"

Eggman thought for a minute, petting his hairy upper lip. Then he snapped his fingers, "I need you to investigate something for me," Metal waited, listening for more information, "Because of how the Chaos emeralds have completely escaped all of my radars, there is no way I can track them down. I would've let you go retrieve the Master Emerald so I can try to find them, but I've come across something more interesting."

"Such as?"

"There is a separate entity on my other radar that is carrying the Master Emerald's energy. Find it and bring it to me."

Metal Sonic did not understand Eggman sometimes, "You want me to find an item that could very well be a mere shard of the Master Emerald instead of grabbing the Master Emerald itself?"

The doctor crossed his arms and puffed, "I would know if it was broken! Stop questioning me for the last time! I will guide you to where the mysterious object is via communicator, now go!"

The robot gave a nod before leaving the man standing there, flying toward the nearest exit. Not thirty seconds later, he is floating in front of an electronic pad with a keypad on it. Metal typed in the ten digit number, the door to the side of it opening up for him. He flew up the stairwell that went straight up, bypassing the actual stairs. The mech then reached a tap door above him that separated the lab from the above world. Metal heaved it open and found himself in the first floor of an abandoned skyscraper.

What used to be a reception area was now dusty, grimy, and overgrown with foliage. The blue robot glanced up to see that he could see the dark cloudy sky through the many holes in the floors above. A strong wind blew through the building, and Metal stepped to the left to avoid a falling tile.

The mech went over to the trap door and closed it, seeing how it blended in with the cracked and dirty floor surrounding it. Unless someone knew exactly what they were looking for, they would never find this entrance.

Metal waited somewhat impatiently for the directions, stopping himself from tapping his foot. Eggman's voice eventually came through. Metal, given the way, shot up into the sky before turning to the direction given and shooting off like a rocket, a sonic boom signifying his departure.

* * *

 _Espio and Omega touched down at their destination. The red and black bot carefully placed the chameleon on the ground at the latter's order. The ninja had a malicious smirk on his face as the duo walked up to the small home Espio had fell on top of earlier that day. His supported arm hitting his side, the purple reptile sauntered up to the front door of the quaint home._

 _Espio glanced back at Omega and bobbed his head up towards the sky. The mech interpreted correctly, activating his jetpack and going over to float over the roof, out of sight of any bunnies who would wonder outside. The chameleon could barely keep his mischievous grin under control; it threatened to split his face in half._

 _He took a deep breath to calm himself. He had to act the part. The grin was replaced with a worried expression. When he figured that he had it perfect, Espio knocked at the door before him, waiting patiently for it to open._

 _It wasn't long until Vanilla the rabbit was standing in the doorway, smiling in relief that he was alright now. She had invited him in; he declined, saying that they should take a step outside for a bit. The rabbit had gazed confusedly at him, head tilted and everything, asking why. He had answered that he wanted to discuss a private matter with her, something that he didn't want Cream to overhear._

 _Vanilla said that she understood completely, but she couldn't have. She called back to her daughter eating lunch in the kitchen that she was taking a breath of fresh air outside. Espio heard the bunny say okay, wanting the mother to be back in soon._

 _The rabbit closed the door behind her as the chameleon backed up. She followed him until they were a decent distance from the front of the house. Vanilla's expression was like his, but more genuine. She questioned Espio's visit. Why was he here? Was there any bad news? What couldn't Cream hear?_

 _Espio just smiled, dropping the act. He simply said, "This war isn't over."_

 _Before Vanilla could respond to that, Omega landed behind her and knocked her out with a swift hit to the head. She fell to the ground with a thud. She was going to be out for a long while. Espio stared at her dispassionately before stepping over the rabbit, heading back toward the home._

 _The chameleon opened the front door and entered the house, gesturing for Omega to stay outside. He closed the door behind him. Cream and her pet had exited the kitchen when they had heard the footsteps. They were surprised to see him before that morphed into glee. The bunny then asked where her mother was; Espio answered that she was outside soaking in the sun's rays. He wasn't lying._

 _The chameleon then smiled. He told the pair that he was thankful for the help earlier. The bunny beamed before bounding over and hugging the reptile. Espio was surprised, sure, but then he realized that this made his job easier. He wrapped his usable arm around the child before painfully pinching a particular spot on her neck. She slumped against him, out cold._

 _The Chao, noticing this, began to panic. The pet then put together that Espio was the one who caused this. Cheese flew at an annoyed Espio. The chameleon, figuring that this thing would be nothing but a nuisance, snatched the pet out of the air with one hand. The reptile increased his hold on the other as he took a step away from the bunny, having her unite with the floor._

 _Cheese was struggling for air. Espio just scoffed before transferring the Chao to his less mobile arm; it didn't have to move much. It had to just keep the pet steady. With his other hand, the chameleon gripped the Chao's head. He twisted his wrist quickly to the side and heard the satisfying snap of bone. Cheese went limp in his hands. Staring at it, he took the red bowtie from the other's neck._

 _Espio grunted when he threw the Chao away in a random direction, not caring about the thump against a wall. He grabbed Cream's wrist and dragged her out of the home. Omega was at his side, picking the bunny roughly up into a single functioning arm. Espio pursed his lips for a moment before jumping up on the robot's shoulders, letting his pride take a dive for the moment._

 _They then took to the skies, leaving the two bodies behind._

Currently leaning against the side of a rocky cave, Espio chuckled to himself as he relived that memory. It had been too easy. They were too trusting. The chameleon still didn't understand why the trio _did_ trust him, but he wasn't complaining. A single golden eye stared out of the mouth of the shallow cave, taking in the green foliage all around. They had been going for a while, a few hours at the least. To be honest, Espio didn't know where they were headed, but he knew that he needed to get away from that house. Yes, he wanted people to find Vanilla and Cheese – he could _imagine_ to horror on their faces, and on Vanilla's when she realized what happened – but he didn't want them to find him and potentially rip his little plan to pieces.

Chewing a couple of blue berries they had found in the forest, Espio switched his focus to the other side of the cave, taking in the shivering mess sitting on the floor. Cream was bound. Her blue tie was tied tightly around her wrists which were behind her back. Thick vines were holding her two ears together, the same with her ankles. The Chao's bowtie was stuffed in her mouth and was held steady there with a vine that wrapped around the child's head. Her chocolate eyes were swirling with nothing but terror.

Espio soaked it all up.

The bunny had only woken up about twenty minutes ago. She had known that Espio knocked her out, so that and the position she was currently in made her tremble in horror. The chameleon hadn't said a word to her since then, just letting his presence fill her with complete dread. She didn't even know that he had killed her pet. Well, there was no time like the present.

Swallowing the sweet berries, the reptile strolled over to the bunny, the ghost of a smirk appearing on his face when she began to cower, whimpering around the cloth. He dropped down to her level, evil ambers boring into frightened browns, "Relax. I'm not going to kill you," he scoffed, "Not yet, anyway."

Her eyes began to moisten up.

Espio flipped a hand, "You should be grateful that I haven't taken your life away yet," he said in a faux soothing voice, "You won't be worth near as much if you're dead," the chameleon chuckled lowly, Cream sniffing in response, "Hostages are valuable. People would do nearly _anything_ to get them back. Especially children…"

He patted her shoulder, and she flinched harshly, "So no, I won't kill you until I get what I want," he pulled back, standing up. Espio looked down at her, "But your little pet on the other hand, I snapped his neck. That's what he gets for being annoying."

Cream stared up at him in shock until the words registered. Her face twisted in complete anguish as tears streamed down her face. She screamed against her gag, yanking her wrists against the vine, making them red and raw. Her eyes were becoming bloodshot and sobs barely escaped her throat. The small rabbit was shaking her head vehemently, refusing to believe it.

Espio shrugged, "Believe me or don't, but I am telling the truth," Cream sobbed louder and dropped her head, tears dripping to the gritty ground below. The bunny was breaking down in front of him, laying down on the dirty floor and curling into herself. The chameleon stared blankly before turning away from her, blocking out her dry coughs and wheezes.

He went back over to his side of the cave and picked up a couple more berries that were sitting happily on a leaf. He plopped two in his mouth and was about to sit down when he heard something outside. Omega was guarding the entrance of the cave, acting as a look-out for anything suspicious. The sound was the robot calling to him:

"MASTER ESPIO, SOMETHING IS APPROACHING THIS LOCATION AT A VERY RAPID RATE."

 _What?_ Espio thought frantically, _Who could have found them?_ The chameleon's mind raced until something popped up in his head, or rather someone. Espio gritted his teeth, berating himself for forgetting all about Omega's Master Emerald energy circulation. Shadow _was_ alive somehow, and it wasn't a stretch to say that he had found the bodies and decided to track the reptile down.

"Omega, cease all Master Emerald energy circulation!" It may be too late, but it didn't hurt to try. Espio the glanced askance as his hostage when her cries got louder at the knowledge that someone was coming, "Shut up!" he hissed, "Or I _will_ kill you!" Cream immediately calmed down, nothing but whimpers echoing throughout the cave now. The chameleon nodded, "And _stay_ quiet," he commanded before making himself invisible.

Espio stepped out of the cave and into the evening sunlight, looking back and forth. Omega was to his right, gazing up – wait, up? The chameleon followed the mech's line of sight to see an object shooting towards them. His golden iris followed the thing – now that it was closer, Espio saw that it was a robot – until it was floating right in front of Omega. Said bot had armed his one arm, pointing a ready machine gun right at the new arrival's head.

The chameleon took in the floating robot's appearance, noticing that it favored Sonic's color scheme. It was the same basic shape as that hedgehog too. Espio narrowed his eye, unsure of this situation.

"STATE YOUR BUSINESS OR BE PEPPERED WITH A HUNDRED BULLETS."

"Your level of intimidation is subpar," the robot clipped with the voice of a male, "Nonetheless, you are to come with me."

Omega didn't lower his gun, "MANY PEOPLE ARE SCARED OF ME, SO THAT STATEMENT IS INCORRECT. WHY MUST I GO WITH YOU?"

The blue mech cut his boosters and grounded himself. He gazed up at Omega, two pairs of red eyes meeting, "There is some Master Emerald energy inside of you, and you cannot hide it, despite the fact that you already have tried. The doctor wants you, and it would be a shame if I have to tear away your only arm left just because you decide to be difficult."

"EGGMAN WANTS ME? IMPOSSIBLE. HE'S DEAD."

That seemed to make the new robot pause, "What gave you that idea? He is very much alive and has sent me on this mission," his red opticals flashed dangerously, "And I will fulfill it."

Espio had to step in. He wanted answers, and he doubted that his mech would ask the right questions. Also, the threat of breaking Omega sounded very real; Espio couldn't let that happen. He showed himself and the blue mech instantly focused on him. The chameleon stared back bravely, "I have a couple of questions. Who are you, why _isn't_ the doctor dead, and where is he now?" it seemed like he had unfinished business to take care of.

The blue bot answered back evenly, "You should know the answers to the first two, and the third is classified," then he slowly approached the chameleon, "You are one of that blue pest's friends, correct? He would be affected greatly if you would go missing…" the mech swiftly reached out for him, but Espio turned invisible at the last second and got out of the way.

He stayed transparent, "Now what gave you _that_ insane idea? You're talking about Sonic, right? Hmph, your systems might be malfunctioning if you think that him and I are _friends._ He could take a dive off of the nearest cliff and I wouldn't care, in fact, I would be the one to push him off."

"SHOULD I FIRE, MASTER ESPIO?"

"No Omega," Espio answered as he observed the shiny mech trying to pinpoint his location, "Wait a moment," _This robot is interesting to me._

"You are choosing to not attack me? A foolish decision," the blue bot's head swiveled in every direction, "But what you said earlier, that is a lie. You, him, and all of his friends have been on good terms with each other. It would be uncharacteristic of you to hate to the point of murder."

"You must not know me at all then," Espio replied, tensing when the other's head turned to where he was standing. He was wondering how the mech knew him period, how it was possible that Eggman built him, and how the doctor was alive _at all_. Ever since he was teleported, his world had gone to the pits.

Before anything could happen however, static filled the air: " _Metal Sonic, have you found the object yet?"_

Espio's eye widened at the sound of the doctor's voice. So it was true. And the robot was named Metal Sonic? Very apt.

Metal replied, "No, I haven't yet." _Why is he lying?_ The chameleon mentally questioned.

" _Grr! It should be in that area then. Hurry up and try to locate it! It disappeared off my radar. C-"_

"I will doctor," the bot responded before cutting the connection.

Espio's curiosity was peaked now, "Why did you do that?"

"His voice was distracting me from taking you hostage."

" _Me_ hostage? You can try," then an idea popped into the chameleon's head that made him smirk. Maybe he could get something out of this… "Or, we can make a compromise here."

"Compromise?" Metal's tone was sharp, "You are in no position to-"

"Oh I think I am," Espio walked over to Omega, who was still armed, and leaned against him, showing himself to the opposing bot, "Listen, we can both benefit from this. We go with you back to wherever you came from the meet the doctor, and I am welcomed as a guest. Now, I know you won't get to fulfill your own self-made objective of taking _me_ hostage, but I have another volunteer."

Metal Sonic didn't come at him; he just stood there, observing. After a heavy pause, the blue mech spoke, "You taking someone else prisoner is as believable as the doctor giving up on his ideals."

 _Well, he did,_ Espio inwardly commented, but didn't say aloud. The chameleon gestured to the cave with a risen brow, "Go see for yourself." Metal Sonic didn't move for the longest, but then he cautiously creeped toward the opening, like he was waiting for either Espio or Omega to pull some trick on him.

When the bot entered the cavern, Espio scoffed at the terrified whines that came from the bunny inside.

"ARE YOU SURE THAT THIS IS A GOOD IDEA MASTER ESPIO? THE DOCTOR WISHES TO OBSERVE ME BECAUSE OF THE ENERGY. WHAT IF HE DECIDES TO…DISMEMBER ME?"

The chameleon glanced up at the bot before focusing back on the cave, "I won't let him do that." Omega didn't say anything else, that satisfying him.

Espio then listened as the sobs grew louder, watching when Metal emerged from the cave with a crying Cream thrown over his shoulder. The robot looked the reptile over, zeroing onto his injuries, then doing the same with Omega, most likely estimating their strength.

When he was done, Metal uttered, "Why do you want to be in the doctor's presence?"

The chameleon tilted his head, "Why does Eggman want Omega and his energy?"

"…It's classified."

"Same here," Espio let out a snort when he saw one of the mech's hands clench, "If I don't go, neither does Omega. Ever heard of a self-destruct command?"

Metal Sonic stared at him and he stared right back, sizing each other up. A robotic voice then filled the air, "Follow me."

Espio smirked, "Lead the way."

* * *

"But-!" Sonic watched Shadow dash away, the evening sun making him squint. His grip tightened around the dead Chao in his arms, "Darn it Shadow…." The blue hero glanced down at the pet in his arms, a sizable lump forming in his throat. Slightly trembling fingers searched for breaths, a pulse, _anything_ , but it was all for nothing. Cheese was dead. _His_ world's Cheese. He had seen this before, and it broke his heart, but this completely shattered it. And on top of that, Cream was missing. Espio had her. _Espio._

Sonic couldn't believe this…

It's funny how his life could be flipped upside down in a matter of minutes.

Taking a deep breath and raking a hand through his quills, the speedster turned around and went back over to an unconscious Vanilla. Still keeping a good grip on Cheese, Sonic held out a hand and shook her; she needed to be awake for this. It would devastate her, but she had to know.

When gentle shakes didn't rouse her, Sonic tried harder. That seemed to have no effect either. The hero was in the middle of a war going on inside his mind – one side being 'slap her', and the other being 'are you crazy?' – but then the older rabbit let out a pained groan. Sonic backed up some as Vanilla slowly woke up, looking at her while biting the inside of his cheek. Cheese had never felt heavier in his arms.

"What…" She carefully sat up on the ground, rubbing her head until the pain from her bruise made her wince. She blinked her eyes multiple times, taking in her surroundings. Vanilla then finally focused on Sonic standing uncomfortably beside her, "Deary? Why are you here?" she looked down at her body, "Why am I out here?"

 _Oh Chaos…_ Sonic braced himself for the onslaught of emotions he was about to receive. He sluggishly squatted down to her level and held out the limp Chao. Vanilla focused on the pet and gasped in shock, her cocoa irises damping up. Her arms shook as she took Cheese in them. She hugged the Chao as tightly as she could, rocking back and forth, crying her heart out, "Ch-Cheese, Cheese…don't let it be true…"

"I'm _so_ sorry, Vanilla…I'm…" the hero didn't know what else to say.

He just stayed in that position, nails digging into his palms, as the mother sobbed. They were like that for a while until she eventually looked at him, then the house, then back at him again, "P-Please tell me that Cream is okay. I'm begging you, _please_ ," Sonic hesitated and that's all it took for Vanilla to break down.

The hero reached out, but didn't touch her, "Vanilla…don't cry, okay? Cream isn't…" He couldn't lie to her. He couldn't say that she wasn't dead, because he didn't _know._ "She was taken by Espio," Sonic forced a grin on his face, and put a hand on the rabbit's shoulder. Her eyes were unfocused, "We _are_ going to look for her. Shadow's out there right now tracking her down. When…" Chaos, how was Tails – _both_ of them – going to react to this? "When the others come, we're all gonna search, alright? She can't be that far away!" _Far by her standards, yeah. But by mine? …Hopefully not._

Vanilla just gave him a meek nod, "Please find my daughter…I'll do a-anything…" she started to cry again, rocking back and forth with her dead pet in her grasp. It was a sight Sonic never wanted to see. He glanced away and subtlety wiped his face while his own tears threatened to fall.

"And we'll do _everything_ we can to get Cream back," Sonic whispered to her, believing that the situation forbade anything louder than that. Blue-furred ears then twitched when they heard a plane in the distance that was getting closer. He drifted his gaze up to the sky, seeing the Tornado fly ever closer. Tails was piloting it, and TT was sitting in the back seat. Knuckles was balancing on the left wing; Rouge was flying behind the plane by herself.

It landed. They all then hurried over to where Sonic and Vanilla was. Rouge was the first to notice. She gasped and covered her agape mouth with her hands, "Oh no…Vanilla…"

Knuckles punched the ground in front of him, grinding his teeth together, not looking at the depressing sight, "Dammit! Why would he..?"

Both foxes were tearing up. Tails was frozen, staring at the rabbit and Chao with wide eyes. He sniffed once before going over to the pair and hugging them, crying along with the mother. He then searched around the clearing with glistening sapphires. He glanced at Sonic, "Where…?"

Sonic dragged a hand down his face, not used to all of this sadness. It felt like someone had taken hold of his chest and squeezed it, taking his breath from him, making his heart hurt, "She's….Espio's got her, buddy."

Tails went rigid, "What?"

"He has her like, he _kidnapped_ her?!" Knuckles exclaimed, and when Sonic nodded, he started to shake with rage, "I _swear_ when I get my hands on him!"

"Calm down Red," Rouge soothed the echidna, putting a hand on his arm. She was quiet and serious, this information sucking all of the joy out of her. She was about to speak again, but the sight of TT dropping to his knees and trembling made her pause. The bat approached him, "Hey," she breathed out, "Are you okay?"

TT shook his head, holding it in his hands. A hard sob racked his body that gained the attention of all present, even Vanilla. The rabbit glanced between him and Tails, confusion visible underneath all of the pain, "It's a long story," Sonic provided, cautiously walking over to the torn up kit, "He is Tails from another world." Vanilla accepted it before her own cries were heard again. Tails hugged her tighter, wiping his eyes as his brother went to the other him.

Sonic sat down beside the shaking cub, not surprised at the flinch he received. TT didn't move away though, rubbing his wet face. Sonic gave him a small smile when the other looked at him, "Don't feel so down lil guy, like I told Vanilla before, we're gonna try our hardest to find-"

"N-No…" Sonic blinked, words getting cut off. TT faced the ground again, moving his head back and forth, "I-It's happening a-again! Ch-Cheese is d-dead a-and Espio h-has her and sh-she's going to die and…"

"Whoa! Calm down bud, she isn't-"

"B-But she i-is!" TT wrapped his arms around himself, "E-Espio's g-going to kill her a-again for a s-second time…I d-don't want that t-to h-happen, but…b-but…h-he's…"

The speedster shared a worried look with the others around them. He then took a risk and put a comforting arm around the cub's shoulders, frowning at how much he was shaking. TT attempted to get out of his hold for a moment before he just gave up, too emotionally weak to fight. Seeing this, Sonic brought the kit in for a hug. TT gripped his chest as he cried into the hedgehog's shoulder.

They stayed like that for a moment before Sonic pulled away, grasping the vulpine's shoulders. He gave them a squeeze, "Cream is not going to die, okay? Especially not for a second time. We're gonna go looking; Shads is already beating us to the punch," the hero gave him a lopsided grin, "And you know how stubborn faker gets."

"That's funny, coming from you," Knuckles commented from the side; it was soft, but Sonic still heard.

He chose to ignore it in favor of seeing TT nod at him. There was no eye contact; Sonic understood that. He jumped back up to his feet, TT doing so as well. The hero regarded everyone else, "Time to split, guys. Search far and wide. Look for signs, tracks, anythin'. We've got a chameleon to find," he turned to his brother, "Hey Tails."

"Yeah?" his voice was somewhat broken.

"Do you mind takin' Vanilla to our house? Espio doesn't know where we live, so in case he comes back, he doesn't find anyone," Sonic glanced at the quietly crying rabbit, "If…If you're okay with that, that is."

She sniffed, "It's fine sweetie…"

Tails nodded at that, helping Vanilla stand up, "I can take her," The kit then glanced over at his twin, "TT…do you want to come with us? You can get to know Vanilla better…" the second fox gave a tiny nod and Tails smiled, "Alright," he took something out of the cuff of his glove and tossed it over to Knuckles. It was his communicator, "It's better for you to use this than me. I have an extra at home."

The echidna turned it on, "Thanks."

"Now that's done, it's time to go huntin'," Sonic palmed his own communicator, "If you find him, tell me. I'll be there in a flash," he winked before zooming off in the opposite direction Shadow went, wanting to cover as much area as he could.

The others watched him leave. Rouge sighed, this whole situation weighing down on her, "I guess we should head off too, Knuckie."

"Wait," Knuckles blinked, "Who said that you were coming with me?"

The agent gave him a dry look, "You have a communicator, I don't," the echidna opened his mouth again, but Rouge put her hand up, "I don't want to argue about this, Red. Do you think this is the best time to?" she asked, gesturing to the two foxes leading a wrecked Vanilla to the Tornado.

Violet eyes followed the trio as they climbed in, Tails piloting, Vanilla in the back seat, and TT taking a risk on the wing. The echidna heard Tails say something about going slow. The guardian turned back to Rouge, "I guess not," he grunted out before starting to run off, the agent following, "Let's go, we've got a reptile to pound."

TT climbed onto the wing, lying down and clenching the edge tightly. The sounds of Tails getting ready for takeoff were pushed to the back of his mind when he saw Knuckles and Rouge leave in a direction. He really hoped they would find Cream. Even though he didn't know her, the image of the bunny dying again was too much to bare. But because she was with Espio, it was most likely that she was…

He swallowed thickly. There was also the chance that she wasn't… TT just wished that the percentage was higher.

"Here we go!" he heard his own voice say.

The winds picked up as they took off.

About five hours later, the moon had risen. TT was sitting in the same chair he had sat in when he had been invited inside Tails' home earlier that day. He had been in the same position ever since they got here, curled up and waiting for any information to come in. Tails was laying in the middle of the floor, head propped up with a pillow, staring at his communicator that was resting beside him. The last update they had from anyone was about an hour ago, Sonic telling everyone that he met up with Shadow.

He hadn't found anything either.

Vanilla was on the couch, sleeping with Cheese still in her clutches. Neither Tailses had the heart to take him away from her. There were tear stains present on her cheeks. Despite what Tails had said earlier, TT hadn't learned anything knew about Vanilla besides the general knowledge he was told about her being nicer than her counterpart. The mother had collapsed on the sofa as soon as they walked in the door.

The two foxes hadn't exchanged many words either, Tails had busied himself with his plane in the garage most of the time. TT stuck to the living room to watch TV and be alone with his thoughts. When Tails had reemerged from his little cave, he made himself comfortable on the floor, letting the guests have the actual furniture. The twins made small talk, but that didn't last long. TT focused on the moving screen and Tails focused on the device he had.

When static came from the communicator, both of the Tailses jumped, startled. Tails picked it up, and TT got off the chair to sit down next to his double.

" _I think it's best if we cut off this search for now."_ Knuckles' gruff voice rung out.

Tails was on him immediately, "But why Knuckles?! If you do then Espio will get farther-"

" _Searching blindly in the dark isn't doing us any favor Tails! If we can't see anything out here, what's the point? If you ask me, we have a better chance of finding him in the morning! And plus, the Master Emerald still needs protecting.-_

 _-For once, Knuckles is right hon,"_ Rouge's voice replaced the echidna's, _"Even I'm saying that searching in the dark isn't the best thing to do right now. It's too dangerous. Espio can hide well enough during the day, we'll never see him coming."_

Tails glanced over at TT, seeing him start to tear up again. The duo had a point, even if Tails didn't like it. He let out a heavy sigh, his mirror image looking at him with wide eyes, "So you're going back to Angel Island then Knuckles?"

" _Yeah, bat-girl's taking me up.-_

 _-And then I'm going back to my place to catch some beauty sleep so I can be ready tomorrow."_

"Alright," Tails slumped, and TT covered his face with his hands, "Sonic, Shadow? Are you hearing this?"

" _Sure am,"_ Sonic answered, _"See you two tomorrow then guys,"_ There was something off with the hero's voice, and Tails was sure everyone could hear it, _"Imma stay out here a little longer. Got anything to say Shads?-_

 _-I'm staying out too."_

" _Alright,"_ Knuckles responded, _"See you."_ He and Rouge were gone.

" _Hey Tails."_

Said fox perked up, "Yeah?"

" _Don't wait up for me, 'kay?"_

Tails nodded even though the other couldn't see, "Okay…"

" _Goodnight lil' bro, you too, TT!"_

"Goodnight," the two responded at different volumes. Tails turned to his twin, "You can spend the night here," he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Not like you have anywhere else to go… Is that chair comfortable enough for you to sleep in?"

TT nodded.

Tails gave him a little smile, "I'm about to go to bed then, don't stay up too late alright?" the twin nodded again, returning the wave Tails gave him as the fox left the room. The lights were switched off, the TV the only thing illuminating the room, brightening up Vanilla's back. TT took the remote and turned the appliance off. He then went back to his chair and curled up, his namesakes becoming a functional blanket.

Sleep didn't take him yet. He was awake when Sonic came home hours later. He saw how tired and worn out he looked. The hedgehog didn't know that he wasn't asleep. TT heard the heavy sigh and the heavier footsteps as the hero stalked away to his room. Only then did the fox drift away, eyes moist.

No one had a restful sleep that night.

* * *

 **Next chapter…the appearance of the albinos!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer- The Sonic universe would be a very different place if I had owned the characters X)**

 **Chapter 9- Concussion**

Rogue was sick of being surrounded by complete and utter darkness. It made him feel uneasy, and – because of that chameleon's little trick – _highly_ vulnerable.

But he wasn't handcuffed this time, so that had to make up for it, right?

No. No it didn't, because now he was absolutely _freezing._

 _I mean hell…did Penumbra teleport me into a fridge or something? Not cool bro…or…would it be 'too cool' in this case? Great, the cold's messin' with my head…_

The albino bat wrapped his arms around his body as a harsh shiver traveled up and down his spine. He was sitting on a very frigid and rocky ground, legs pulled up against his torso as he leaned back on a similarly chilled surface. Wide eyes darted back and forth in an attempt to pierce the ever present blackness, but it was to no avail. There was no ray of light _anywhere_ ; he waved a slightly shaking hand in front of his face and gritted his teeth when there was no change to his vision.

Another tremble shook him, and he wasn't sure that the freezing temperatures were the only thing that caused it.

Rogue began to breathe faster, a bubble of panic growing inside him. The bat then shook his head and fought to keep himself from falling apart, taking slower and deeper breaths to calm his racing heart back down. _C'mon man, keep yourself together,_ he mentally chastised, _You're too old to be scared of the dark. There's nothin' out there to get ya; it's all mental._

His whole system froze when he heard a footstep in the distance. His pulse skyrocketed.

 _Everything's still okay… That was just a…a…_

There was another one.

… _OhChaosI'mgonnadiehere. Just make it quick and painless, I'm begging!_

Then there was a moan, and Rogue paused in his cowering. That sounded more…pained and non-threatening than he thought it would be. Teal irises focused in the direction he heard the sound from, and Rogue sucked in a surprised breath when there was a flicker of light. _Blue_ light.

It was like someone was striking a lighter. The flickered once, twice, three times before staying lit, showing the body of the person holding the ball of luminescence.

He could recognize that hairdo anywhere, and relief filled his body at the sight, "Silver?" his voice whispered out a first; the other hedgehog stood straight up and glanced around, peering into the darkness, hearing the echoes. The bat repeated it louder as he climbed up to his feet, "Silver!" he flapped his wings and flew over to the white Mobian, bracing the cold.

Rogue dropped down in front of the glowing cyan light, a little grin on his face. But that was before he took in Silver's appearance. There was blood oozing out the side of the other's head, trailing down to his chin. With the minimal light he had, Rogue saw a deep purple bruise growing where the red was coming from. He gaped, "Whoa dude…"

"Rogue…You're here…" Silver's eyes were unfocused as they trained on him. The hedgehog gave him a trembling smile, "I…I'm happy…that I'm not…in…in this place…by myself."

Now that he could see their immediate surroundings, Rogue could tell that they were in a cave of some sort. The icicles hanging off the jutting rocks reminded him how chilled it was in here. He could see his breath condensing in front of his face. But how cold he was didn't matter right now, something was clearly wrong with his friend.

Rogue waved a hand in front of Silver's golden eyes, seeing how sluggish they were in responding to it. The bat bit his lip when he focused on the blood again, "You're bleeding man…What happened to you?"

Silver blinked slowly, "I…I am?" he moved his unoccupied hand up to his bruise and winced at the touch. He held his finger up and tilted his head at the blood in his finger, "Oh…I…I must've hit…my head…hard…" the hedgehog's face twisted up in pain, "It…It hurts now…" the blue went out as the psychic slumped forward.

 _Oh no!_ Rogue thought frantically before grunting when the body leaned onto him. He caught the other, ignoring the all-encompassing darkness for the moment to throw an arm around the hedgehog's shoulders, guiding one of Silver's arms around his. _Is he fully out?_ "Silver? You still with me bro?" _Please be still with me. He can't go too, not after…_

"I'm…I'm still…with you…" Silver responded breathily, growing weak.

 _He has to have a concussion,_ Rogue adjusted the body leaning heavily against him, providing unanticipated heat. The bat patted the psychic's arm with enough force to cause slight discomfort, "Stay awake Silv!"

"But…I feel…feel really tired…"

 _This is bad, really bad. I gotta keep him movin'!_ Rogue turned in place, going in slow circles to have Silver move his legs to walk, "I know dude, but you can't right now. We hafta get some help for you first." The bat squinted his eyes, again trying to see if he could make out _anything_ surrounding them. And it didn't work, "Hey Silver, can you make that light again? I know it might be hard but, Chaos…we won't be able to go anywhere without it."

There was a pause, and Rogue was afraid that the other was unconscious, but then Silver's shaky voice filled the air, "I'll…try…" it took a minute, but the blue glow was back, surprisingly stronger than it was before. Then the psychic rose his head a bit to glance over at the bat, brow slightly raised, "Aren't you…you a…bat? Can't you…use…that…hearing thing?"

Rogue took his eyes off of him, swallowing in embarrassment as he took in the _numerous_ exits of the medium-sized room they were in. _This could take forever! We'll be freakin' popsicles before we get outta here!_ He answered Silver after assessing their bleak situation, "Echolocation? I uh…I've never had to use that before…so, I don't…" he trailed off there.

The psychic understood, if the sudden glare was anything to go by, "What…kind of…bat…doesn't know…know how?"

Rogue sighed, "Chill man," _Poor choice of words,_ "I never learned. Don't really need it in the city."

The hedgehog continued like if he hadn't spoken, "You're…You're depending…on _me_ …for…for light…and I…" the ball flickered again, but thankfully stayed lit. The glare was then gone and a genuine laugh escaped Silver's lips, "We are…are _so_ …screwed…"

The bat let out a chuckle, "You can say that again," it died out when he analyzed the ten dark corridors that led to more of this large cavern, resulting to 'eeny, meeny, miny, moe' for picking the way that would hopefully lead them up and out of this cave. He selected the one to his immediate left and took a couple steps in that direction, noticing quickly that basically dragging around Silver like this wasn't going to help cut their time getting out.

He spoke to the hedgehog again, "Okay bro um…you're not gonna like this, but I'm gonna have to carry you if we want to get out of here before we freeze."

"It's…It's not that cold…" _Not that cold? Maybe to you because you have fur everywhere, but to me, it feels like I've got an icicle shoved up my freaking butthole,_ "But…what…whatever you need…to do…just do it…"

Accepting that as permission, Rogue readjusted Silver before picking him up bridal style. The bat outwardly laughed at the frown at the psychic's face, "I warned ya dude."

"Just…go…" Silver said before using both of his hands to form the ball of light, making it even stronger and brighter, "This should…help…"

"It does! Thanks Silv," Rogue's smile then faded at the sight of the nasty bruise paired with droopy eyelids, "Hey, if you go to sleep, don't be surprised if you wake up with an ice jammed into your head quills."

"I'll…I'll keep that…in mind…" The bat gave him a quick grin and the trembling body – not that cold, yeah right – a little squeeze before flapping his wings. Teal irises took in how the cyan glow bounced off the rocks and reflected off of the many icicles hanging around. Silver's powers provided enough to see, but not that far. _I can't go all speed demon in here,_ Rogue thought as he pushed forward, entering the stony hallway, _Unless I want a full face make-over._

He carefully flew in the smaller space, twisting left and right to avoid any stalagmites that would potentially rip him open. He also occasionally glanced down at Silver to make sure he wouldn't fall asleep. The psychic was usually staring at the ball of cyan power in his hands, most likely keeping it from going out. But this time, those shaky golden irises were peering up at the winged mammal.

"S'up?" Rogue asked, flying upwards a bit when he had met a rock wall, heading towards the opening at the top. He inwardly sighed when it was as dark as it was a level lower.

"Do you…you think that…" Silver's gaze left his face and shifted to what was in front of them, focused on the near blackness that seemed endless, "that Charmy…and Amy…and the…the others…are in here?"

The bat faltered in a wing flap, almost sending them crashing into the ground, but he fixed himself before they did. The cave was probably _huge,_ if the many hallways they _could've_ taken were any indication of that. If Nummy had teleported them all together… It would take forever to find them, and with how Silver was, Rogue didn't want to waste time getting help for him. Why did he have to make this decision?

Rogue swallowed hard, "Maybe man…maybe."

"Are…Are we gonna look…for them?"

He clenched his teeth and eventually shook his head. He ignored the shocked expression on the other's face, "Best case scenario is if we run into them, but look at you dude! If we take the time to search the whole place…" he heard a sniff and, surprised, looked down at Silver who was crying, some of the tears mixing in with the blood in his face, "Don't cry, okay Silv? I…I just think it's best if we get you help first and then come back-"

"No!" Rogue gasped when all light vanished, stopping his flight as fast as he could. He thankfully didn't crash into anything.

He focused on where Silver's face was supposed to be, shocked beyond belief, "What the hell dude?!"

The psychic sniffed before answering him, his voice thick with emotion, "We can't…just…just leave them! They'll…They'll die!"

Rogue had nearly forgotten how extreme Silver could be sometimes, "Calm down, no one's gonna kick the bucket _._ But let's think for a second, if you keep the light off, the longer we'll stay in here, the longer it'll take to check out that noggin of yours, and the longer it'll take for us to come back here to search for 'em. So…you're basically making them stay longer than they have to be."

There was a sharp intake of breath before everything in the immediate area was tinted blue again. Silver was staring at his hands with an extremely guilty and apologetic expression on his face, ears pinned back on his head, "I…I'm sorry! It's just…just that…" the psychic sighed before locking gazes with the bat, "Promise that…that we'll come…back as soon…as possible."

Rogue forced out a snicker, "I can't tell the future bro, that's somethin' more up your alley."

"But…"

"Look man," the bat breathed out, "I can't promise you anythin', but I will _try_ alright? We don't have any idea where we are, some stuff might go down." _I just_ _ **really**_ _hope that we got the short end of the stick and that we're the only ones down here._

The tears came back, "Now you're just…just jinxing us…."

Rogue resumed flying, "Stop worryin' so much, 'kay? We've all done too much of it already." _If anyone is trapped down here too, it should be Espio. Man, if I see him, I'll let the prick freeze._

Silver didn't respond to that, simply refocusing on the only light in the cave. His face was strangely blank.

The duo flew through the large cavern, coming across many dark tunnels. Rogue hoped that the ways he chose were the right ones, because there would be _a lot_ of other paths to check if they were going the wrong direction.

The pair finally had come across something promising after wondering the place for almost thirty minutes. Rogue was the first to notice it, his sensitive ears twitching. He grounded himself so he could focus on the faint sound more. Silver glanced curiously up at him, "What…do you hear?" those were his first words since saying that the bat jinxed them.

"I think…" Rogue furrowed his brow and listened carefully, his face lighting up with glee when he identified the sound, "It's wind! We've gotta be close dude!"

A smile grew across the psychic's face, "It's about…time…"

The bat let out a relieved laugh as he continued on, eyes searching for a way out until he turned a corner. They were in a long corridor, and there was light coming from the far end of it. The wind had grown (really) loud, and he was slightly concerned about that, but that was pushed to the back of his head. They were almost out!

"Are you…you just gonna…stand there or…?"

Rogue grinned down at a somewhat grumpy Silver, "Sorry, I'm just-" his words then cut off when there was a deep rumbling above them. The bat looked up just in time for a pebble to bounce against his forehead, falling to the ground. He then quickly sidestepped a bigger rock, whatever that was happening not really registering until he heard the loud _snap!_ above him.

The pair stared numbly as a large crack formed over their heads before elongating rapidly toward the way of the exit.

"Again…" Silver's voice had an edge of hysteria to it, and Rogue didn't blame him, "Are…you… _just gonna stand there?"_

The bat didn't even verbally respond, he just took off like a bullet, resisting the urge to look back when the rumbles became deafening. Silver shouted in surprise at the burst of speed, abandoning the ball of light (they could see well enough without it now) and wrapping his arms around the bat's neck. The psychic then looked over Rogue's shoulder and promptly screamed in terror at the sight of crashing boulders chasing them down.

"Fly f-faster!" Silver shouted in the other's ear, adrenaline clearing up his fogged brain for the time being, "T-The ceiling's gonna _c-crush_ us!"

"I kinda figured that bro!" Rogue yelled over the crashing behind him, a cold sweat forming on his brow as he pushed the muscles controlling his wings. His back was gonna be _mad_ sore when they got outta there, "Can't you use your powers to help or something?"

Silver's head throbbed. Yeah, it was clearer, but it still hurt like nobody's business, "I-I might slow you down!"

Rogue weaved around a falling stone, "Oh _Chaos_ yeah, keep your powers to yourself then! Being crushed by rocks is _definitely_ not the way I want to go out!" he then worked himself into overdrive as more rocks began to fall in front of him, ducking and dodging any potential pain. The exit was getting closer and closer, their surroundings getting lighter and lighter. They were almost there…!

Then a rock smacked into Rogue's right wing.

He cried out in shock and pain as he lost his balance in the air, flipping over himself and unintentionally throwing Silver away in the process. The bat crashed to the icy ground hard, bouncing and rolling a bit. Before he could get up however, another heavy stone fell on top of that same wing and pinned it to the floor, making Rogue cry out in agony. His eyes closed in pain, tears threatening to fall.

The feeling was on par with getting his shoulder dislocated, if not _worse_. The rock felt jagged, and there was a spot in the middle of his wing that felt like it was being _stabbed._ Rogue eventually opened his eyes and wasn't ready for how bright everything was around him, and _really_ wasn't ready to realize that he was literally in the middle of a blizzard, harsh winds and freezing snow whipping across his face.

His teeth were chattering. The bat ignored his environment (as best as he could) to focus on the stone trapping him. Rogue's jaw dropped when he saw that the stone was one of the last ones to fall when the cavern apparently had _caved in_ on itself. He was looking at nothing but a huge pile of rubble being covered quickly by the falling snow.

The bat stared at it with a sinking heart, _That's why I didn't promise you anythin' Silv._

Speaking of that hedgehog, Rogue whipped his head back and forth to try to pinpoint the psychic's location. He had _no_ idea where he had thrown him. When teal irises didn't see Silver in the whiteness surrounding him, a lump lodged itself in Rogue's throat as he slowly looked back at the destroyed cave.

His heart was thudding against his chest, "Oh no… _please_ no…Silver!" his shouting voice was barely heard over the rushing winds, _"Silver!"_ Rogue screamed louder, but there was still no answer. The bat began to hyperventilate; he turned his attention to the boulder holding him down. He was stuck on his stomach, so he only had one arm to work with. The white-furred Mobian gritted his chattering teeth and pushed as hard as he could against the heavy stone. It didn't move. He tried again and again and again, but the thing _still didn't move._

He was panting by this point, whole body chilled and eyes moist from the pain and from the snow hitting them at all angles. Rogue foolishly attempted to pull himself out from under it, but that resulted in nothing but a bleeding lip from him keeping himself from screaming in torture. He took deep breaths, keeping the panic attack at bay. He wasn't trapped permanently, he wasn't in danger of getting frostbite, and he wasn't the only one out here because Silver definitely _wasn't_ dead.

Rogue clenched his fists in frustration, snow covering his gloves, "Silver! Bro, I know you're out there! And not…and not…" To the bat's surprise and relief, he got an answer. There was a loud groan to the right of him, so he whirled his head that way, watching as some snow shifted to reveal the silver hedgehog who was staining some of the fluff red. The psychic was holding his head as he unsteadily got to his feet, lips twisted up in a wince. _That tumble roughed him up more than he already was,_ Rogue thought before saying aloud, "Silver! Over here man!"

Through the frenzied snow, golden irises locked onto his splayed out body. The hedgehog moaned again in pain before shuffling through the slush to get to the bat. When he did, he dropped his hand and glanced from Rogue, to the rock, to the cave in, and back again, "What…?" he drawled out, wind making it almost impossible to hear.

Rogue thanked Chaos for his incredible sense of hearing, "Dude, I'm so glad you weren't trapped back there! I thought…" he trailed off before shaking his head to get rid of the horrible image, "Can you use your powers to get this rock off me?"

Silver wiped from of the blood that had dribbled down to his chin before nodding, "I…I can try…" the hedgehog held out his hand, and it flickered blue, but then it went out and Silver began to waver slightly, holding his bruise again. "Ahh…" he hissed, cracking open a droopy eye to look at a worried Rogue, "I don't…don't know if…I can…"

"You have to man! You can do it!" Rogue encouraged from his spot on the ground, desperate to get the weight off his wing before there was any permanent damage, "It's too heavy for me to move!"

Silver swallowed thickly before lifting his arm and trying for a second time, his limb glowing along with the rock this time. Precious seconds ticked by before Rogue felt the stone putting less pressure on him. Once there was a centimeter – or even less than that – of space between the boulder and his wing, the bat rolled away to move his appendage from under it.

Rogue immediately looked over his wing, hissing when any movement in it caused a sharp pain to resonate throughout his system. A part of it was bent the wrong way, already swelling. He touched it and yelped, the area incredibly sensitive to touch. "Thanks Silv," he began, turning to the hedgehog, "I really owe you – Silver?" Rogue called out in concern when the other fell to his knees, panting harshly. He scrambled up to his feet, careful of the position of his wing, and went over to squat in front of his friend, "You alright?"

"Dizzy…" Silver breathed out, quills whipping back and forth from the strong gales.

"C'mon," Rogue put an arm around the psychic's shoulders for a second time that day before helping the other stand up, "We've got to get moving."

The hedgehog leaned heavily on him, "But…the cave…"

Rogue glanced solemnly back at the used-to-be entrance, "There's no way we're getting back in there bro."

"But our…friends…!" golden eyes were watering again.

The bat shook his head, "I think we were the only ones in there…"

Those eyes turned to glare at him through the tears, "Are you…you _sure?_ "

Rogue glanced away from him, "We've got to get you some help Silver. If we don't, it's gonna get worse," he squinted his eyes, trying and failing to see ten yards ahead of himself because of the blizzard, "If only we could-" he interrupted himself with a yell when his body was suddenly sling-shotted into the air at an incredible speed. The bat glanced up to see himself getting closer to the puffy clouds causing the horrible weather, then he broke through the threshold, feeling instantly warmer because of the sun shining on his skin. "What the…" he was immediately joined by Silver, who was determined not to look at him. There were both surrounded with a cyan aura, "Silv?"

"W-We…are…f-finding…me….help…" the psychic's voice was strained, cracking with each syllable. He was trying to hide the pain, but Rogue could see right through him.

The bat attempted to move his arms, but they wouldn't listen to him, "Dude! We don't have to do it like this! The blizzard isn't _that_ bad, we can-"

"Th-This…is…the…the…" Silver paused for a moment, "the…easiest…way. Your…wing…h-hurts. Flying…above…is…is… _f-faster._ "

Rogue hated the way the other sounded, "But not if you're hurting yourself man! Just drop us back-" again, he was cut off by his own shout when Silver propelled them both forward in one direction. The bat didn't speak after that, staying silent as he casted fretful glances at the hedgehog going through agony. He knew why Silver was too. It was so they could somehow go _back_ to the cave and search for their other friends.

He was basically hurting himself for this purpose, and Rogue couldn't do anything about it.

They weren't flying for long – about five minutes – before Rogue felt himself slowing down. Red flags instantly went off in his mind. He gazed over at Silver and sucked in a shocked breath when he saw the psychic's eyelids drooping, "Hey Silver! Wake up! Sleeping pilots aren't recommended, y'know?" his words had to effect on the hedgehog, whose body suddenly went limp. The aura around them flickered out and they were falling. Fast.

Rogue shouted in terror before reaching out and grabbing Silver's wrists. He brought the other close as they plummeted out of the sky, breaking through the clouds and being encased by the blizzard again. The bat spread out his wings, but flinched at the intense pain that action caused. He couldn't fly. They were falling, and he couldn't fly. They were going to _die_ , and he couldn't fly.

As a last-ditch effort, Rogue shook the hedgehog in his grip, desperately wanting him to wake back up and fix this situation. But Silver was out-cold, not coming back anytime soon. So Rogue just closed his eyes and braced himself for the devastating impact.

 _Heh, at least I'm not getting crushed by massive rocks…_

They hit the ground, and Rogue realized that it was less painful than he had thought it would be. His speed was compromised by the soft white fluff that surrounded him and Silver, slowing the two bodies to a stop, buried deep underneath a massive snowbank. Sure, Rogue's wing was screaming in torment, but he was all in one piece, still living. And feeling the rising and falling of the chest next to him, he was positive that Silver was alive as well.

He had no time to celebrate though, because they needed get out of here before too much snow built on top of them. Inhaling and exhaling shakily, Rogue started to carefully dig up at a slant so he wouldn't be smothered. Silver was positioned over his shoulder, opposite the one with the crooked wing.

It was a long and painful process, but he eventually made it back up to the surface, breathing heavily on his hands and knees, shaking Silver off him, making the hedgehog fall to his side. He hated to sound like a specific echidna that he knew, but Rogue _really_ wanted to take a nap, get some rest. He then glanced over at the unconscious psychic beside him, focusing on the blood still dripping from that head wound he had. _But I can't, because he needs help asap. Wherever that will be…_

Sighing, Rogue threw Silver over his safe shoulder before standing back up, mind instantly reverting to when he first had to carry the hedgehog like this. Back at the prison, where having ability stealing serum injected in their bodies seemed like a walk in the park compared to how things were now. If only he could tell his past self what he had gotten into…

It didn't matter; he couldn't change the past, only the future.

Rogue picked a direction and followed it.

Luckily for him, hope came after ten hard minutes of fighting the high winds and piercing cold in the form of a snowman, a _clothed_ snowman. "Those clothes had to come from somewhere…" Rogue coughed, throat dry and rough from breathing in the harsh cold air. The bat trudged toward the decorated pile of snow and looked it over before focusing past it, the happiness flowing through his system almost making his legs buckle.

There were igloos, and igloos meant people. Igloos meant _help._

Rogue used up the energy he had left to run to the closest one, leaving deep footprints in the snow behind him. When he got to the entrance, he yelled out, "Anybody in there?! I need help!" It took a moment, but the flap covering the way in was pushed to the side before an elderly lady stepped out. Her furred hood was flapping against her head as she examined him and then the body slumped over his shoulder. She nodded before gesturing for them to come in, reentering her home with Rogue following closely.

The change in temperature was immediate, becoming more comfortable than the negatives that were outside. The igloo wasn't huge, but it seemed cozy enough to live in. There was a nice fire in the middle, over it a pot filled with some kind of soup. There were sleeping bags off to the side, along with a large chest that was probably stuffed with necessities. Along with the woman, there was also an older man living there, having paused in consuming his soup to eye the bat walking in.

Rogue stood somewhat nervously at the front while the woman went over to the chest and pulled out two blankets, one black and one brown. She laid the brown one by the fire and pointed to it, "Lay him here. We need to get him warm," Rogue did so without hesitation, backing off when the lady went to wrap Silver up like a burrito. She then gave the bat the black cover and gestured to the spot beside the hedgehog. Rogue sat down close to the fire and wrapped himself up, basically melting in the warmth and comfort of the blanket.

"So," the man spoke up this time, taking in Rogue's condition, "How long were you out there enduring the storm?"

The bat cleared his scratchy throat a little, "Too long."

"Jari-Pekka, why don't you fix him a bit of soup for his throat while I work on his friend here. You know how long time exposure can effect someone's throat," the woman pipped up from her spot beside Silver, a first-aid kit at her side, wrapping bandages around the psychic's head.

The now named Jari-Pekka gave a deep chuckle, "I'm just seeing if we should check for frostbite as well, Ursule," he responded as he palmed a bowl and began to fill it, "Don't want them losing any limbs if we can help it."

Ursule just hummed a reply, focused on her job with Silver. Rogue watched her until the smell of soup invaded his nostrils. He took the bowl from the man's hands and smiled appreciatively, "Thank you."

"You're very welcome," Jari-Pekka smiled back before sitting down at his designated spot again, slurping his own food, "What's your name boy? And why were you braving a Holoskan blizzard in the first place?"

The bat swallowed a spoonful of soup and nearly groaned at the taste, instead, he answered the man, "It's Rogue," his voice sounded much better, "And um…it's kinda a long story. Silver and I were just…exploring and the storm hit us out of nowhere. Flying rocks caused that," he bobbed his head over to the hedgehog, "and this," he pointed to his broken wing.

The man nodded slowly, "Well Reggie, next time you know what to watch out for when exploring these parts."

Rogue blinked, "That's…not my name."

Jari-Pekka tilted his head, "It's not? I'm sorry, my memory is shot at times. It was Rory right?"

"Uh…"

Ursule giggled from where she was before going over to the man's side, "Don't worry about it little bat, my husband and new names don't mix." She sat crisscrossed, folding her hands in her lap, "You can rest here for as long as you like. Then you two should go so you can find some help for your wing; I can't do anything with it."

"Thank you," Rogue said again, "Do you know the nearest place where I can get that help?"

"A bigger village directly south of here," Jari-Pekka responded, "It's a bit of a journey though. Will you be able to get there in your condition?"

Rogue glanced over to Silver. _If he's better when he wakes up, then yeah,_ "We'll be able to make it. Silver over there's got a few tricks up his sleeve," he said, grinning.

"I'm not surprised," Ursule laughed, "You better get some rest dear. I bet you're tired from what you had to go through today."

Rogue tilted his head back to drink the rest of his soup, _Tired is an understatement,_ "You bet I will," he chuckled before placing the bowl beside him and laying down on his stomach with the blanket still around him. His eyelids instantly felt heavy, "Thanks again for the help…"

He was asleep before they got a chance to reply.

* * *

"There is no way. There is no WAY that this is true!"

"What are you talking about Vector? This is awesome! Two worlds coming together is so cool!"

"Two worlds DIDN'T come together Charmy! Those two must've takin' something to mess with their heads!

"Um, we _are_ right here!"

Espio was sitting in a chair at the café he and Vector agreed to meet up at. He was leaning back in it, watching Amy as she glared weakly at the disbelieving crocodile, them both seated on opposite ends of the table. Charmy was on the right side of the green reptile, staring at the hedgehog and echidna with stars in his eyes. Knuckles was beside Amy, and to the left of Espio, who was neighboring Vector. The echidna wasn't looking at anyone at the table; he was gazing up at the clouds and hot-air balloons.

Vector and Charmy had come from their little flight fifteen minutes ago; Espio had about thirty minutes of alone time with Amy and Knuckles before those two showed up a little earlier than expected. Within that half hour, the chameleon had been filled in with what the pair wanted to tell him. From the details of their 'home' world, to the reasons why Amy almost attacked him with a plant earlier.

Espio didn't know what to think at first. The whole story seemed ridiculous, but the more he listened (keeping the hospital's phone call in the back of his mind) the more he believed them. He could easily tell when someone was lying, and they weren't. Sure, he knew that they were keeping some things from him, but he could respect that. He could tell that they were personal. Like for example, Espio had asked who had his dimensional twin killed, and Amy immediately changed the subject. Espio didn't push.

The only subjects that the ninja did push were the topics of 'how exactly did they get here' and 'how could Shadow be in two places at once'. Their answer to the first one was vague. Espio didn't know the minute details of Chaos Control, but he had a feeling that the move wasn't the _only_ thing that transferred them. To the second, the pair were actually confused, questioning that as well. Apparently they didn't know that Shadow had been in the hospital. But how could they? They just got here.

And also, another reason why he deemed their story true was because how they were acting. Knuckles wasn't being Knuckles. This one was more reserved, calmer (lazy would be a better word), and thoughtful. He wasn't saying that the other echidna didn't use his head, but he rushed to react before taking the time to analyze more often than not. Even though he looked zoned out, Espio could tell that this Knuckles' mind was racing.

With Amy, well, it was harder to spot the differences for the simple fact that Espio wasn't around her nearly as much as he was around Knuckles. This hedgehog was more, like the echidna next to her, level-headed. She wasn't as expressive as the other Amy. She wasn't as self-centered as the other one either. Not that the other Amy was a pure narcissist, it was actually normal for a female her age to act that way. This Amy was very concerned about her other friends, to the point where Espio believed that she actually didn't care that much about her own wellbeing, at least not at the moment anyway.

Charmy and Vector had arrived after Espio had been told about Shadow's twin somehow getting them here, separating the pair from everyone else. The reptilian partners had greeted the echidna/hedgehog duo, and were confused about the lackluster response that they received. Espio had filled them in, no detail missed, and that's where they were now, Charmy being star-struck and Vector being stubborn as usual.

Vector humphed, crossed his arms on top of the table, eyeing the two across from him, "That's why I said it! Did you two eat somethin' suspicious today? Like sushi from a van?"

Knuckles lowered his head to raise a brow at him, "I doubt they sell sushi here."

"That's not the POINT!" the croc brought down a fist on the table, "The point is that you two are actin' off, and it's botherin' _me._ "

Amy frowned at him, irritation swirling in her green irises, "Espio told you why we are 'acting off'! Don't you believe him? Charmy believes our story, why can't you?"

Vector rolled his eyes, "Because he'll believe anythin' someone says. I told him that Espio ate his chocolate bar yesterday because it helps with his meditation."

"What?" Charmy whirled on him, "You ate my chocolate bar? You owe me one!"

The croc waved him off, "I'll get ya one later, maybe, but back to you two," he said, pointing at the mammalian duo, "I just can't accept what you're sayin' as the truth."

Amy sighed, "Well what do you want us to do to prove it to you? So that you'll believe us?"

Vector thought for a moment, "I can't think of anythin'."

"That's great," Knuckles drawled out somewhat sarcastically before glancing over at the silent chameleon, "I never thought I'd say this, but can you help us out here Espio? I know you've explained it to him, but that clearly isn't enough."

Honestly, Espio couldn't think of anything at the moment either. Vector had always been stubborn. He was a detective; he formed opinions off of facts and clues. The croc needed hard evidence before he could start believing what was told to him. The newcomer's words and personalities weren't enough, and Espio didn't quite know what else to give him. Wait…actually he did.

"Vector," said croc glanced at him. Espio tapped his fingers on his own arm, hoping that this would open his friend's mind up, "I've gotten a call today from Station Square hospital saying that I've been admitted there due to major injuries. As you can see, I'm not hurt, and I'm not at the hospital right now. How can you explain that?"

Charmy was bouncing up and down in his seat, "See Vector! It's true! They're from another dimension!"

"Hm…" Vector rubbed his chin in thought, eyes roaming over Amy and Knuckles once more, "Well, it looks like we're visiting the hospital today!" he then gave Espio a grin, "I trust ya Es, I really do, but I need evidence. And since it was a phone call and not a message, I gotta see for myself."

The chameleon could give him that. It was reasonable, in a way, "You do realize that we won't be able to make it until tomorrow. Did you forget how long the ride was up here?"

Vector ran a hand down his face, "How can I forget?"

"So are we gonna leave now then?" Charmy buzzed; both of his elders nodding, "Aw but we just got here!" he whined, utilizing his puppy eyes, but before either of them could give in, he used them against Amy and Knuckles, "Can you two come with us? Please? It'll be so _cool_ to ride with people from another world!"

"You're making us sound like aliens Charmy," Amy giggled, "You're just like the one I know. Sure we'll come!" she said, seeing the nod from Knuckles in the corner of her eye. The pinkette glanced between Vector and Espio, ending up on the former, "If it's okay with you two, that is. We have no ties to this place, and we never know if we'll run into one of our friends!"

"Sure," Espio answered. He was actually going to suggest that they came before Charmy brought it up, "There is enough room in the jeep."

"Fine," Vector huffed, "But if I find out that you two just ate somethin' funky for breakfast or that you're pranking us, you're buying Charmy TWO chocolate bars!"

"Now I don't know if I want you two to be twins or not…" the bee muttered under his breath.

Knuckles shrugged as he yawned, "That's fine with me."

"Oh, and you can rest at our place until the morning as well if you want," Espio added, "We will get back late."

Amy blinked, partially surprised, "You know, it's going to be really hard to get used to a nice you," she then smiled, "We'll take you up on your offer!"

Espio nodded before standing out of his seat, the rest of the newly formed group doing so as well. Vector then led the way to where his jeep was parked, in a lot near the city limits. No one made any real conversation until Charmy buzzed up to Vector with a curious look on his face, "Hey Vec, even if they are really from a different place, can you buy me two chocolate bars anyway?"

The croc just sighed in exasperation.

"…Please?"

* * *

 **Next chapter…there are two hedgehogs who haven't made an appearance yet, take a guess!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.**

 **A/N- This fic is growing up so fast, hitting the big One-Oh! (fireworks go off in the background) But this is because of you guys! All of the awesome support I get inspires me even more, I appreciate all of it! But enough of hearing me gush, read on!**

 **Warnings- Uh yeah, it's time guys, got some foul language in this chapter. So basically, take shelter everyone, the F-bombs are-a comin'.**

 **Chapter 10- The birds and the bees**

A river roared as its dangerous waters pounded against its banks, the white rapids sweeping anything that landed in them away in a flash. The water was deep and chilled, the force of it having the potential to sling a person everywhere like a ragdoll. The pushing and shoving and tossing and pulling wasn't the worse of it either, there was a gigantic waterfall at the end, waiting for the unfortunate souls who were about to fall to their deaths. The sharp rocks biding their time underwater would insure that, if fear alone didn't do their job for them.

For Mephiles, today was not his lucky day.

The hedgehog held his breath the moment he hit the raging rapids, heartrate instantly skyrocketing when he was quickly submerged by the unforgiving current. His body was being flipped over and over again and it wasn't long before he couldn't tell which way was up or down anymore. He opened his eyes to try to figure it out before he ran out of oxygen, but the river was so murky that he barely could see his arm in front of him.

Alarms went off in his head when some air bubbles escaped his mouth, _This-This isn't good! I'm going to run out of breath soon if I don't…_ Mephy's thoughts trailed off, too focused in attempting to get his flailing limbs to cooperate with him. It didn't even matter if he moved up or down anyway, _both_ ways would work in his favor. If he managed to go upwards, he'd get the oxygen he needed. If he went downwards, then he would get to merge with the solid ground, slither his way above the water level, and get the _precious oxygen that he needed_.

Willing himself to fight the rapids, Mephiles actually did so, kicking his feet to propel himself in whatever way he was going, and using his arms to resist the tumbling powers of the rushing river. Surprisingly, in only a couple seconds of swimming, the shadow 'hog broke the surface of the water, taking in a desperate gulp of air. He panted as he fought to keep his head above the cloudy liquid.

He glanced over at his surroundings as they passed by, learning that he was – he guessed – _dropped_ in this canyon looking place with plants growing all over the rocks. And…And did he see _waterwheels_ in the background?

However, the details of the new environment were suddenly pushed to the back of Mephiles' mind when he noticed something in the distance that the river was taking him to. He began to panic when he recognized the thing as an edge, a drop-off, a waterfall, or in other words, a _deathtrap._

Mephy whipped his head side-to-side, realizing with dread that he was right in the middle of the river, and that there was no way he was going to get to the bank in time. His malnourished muscles were already screaming at him. The hedgehog took a nervous gulp as he gazed back down at the water, figuring that south was the only way to go, hoping that it wasn't too deep.

After filling his lungs, Mephiles dove back in and pumped his legs as fast and as hard as they would go, angling – or trying to anyway – his body downward. Just as the hedgehog was giving up hope and thinking that the drop was any second now, his outstretched hand touched solid ground. He almost let out a sigh of relief before realizing exactly where he was at the moment.

So, he kept it in as he melted into the earth and zoomed across the bottom of the river toward its side. He went up the bank before stopping on the flat ground beside the rapids of death, emerging out of the shadow he formed and propping himself up on his shaking arms, breathing harshly. Mephiles hit his head a bit to get the water out of his ears before he glanced to his left, breath becoming stuck in his throat when he focused on the drop-off not ten meters ahead of him.

 _That was too close for comfort,_ his mind provided as he crawled away from death as fast as possible, dropping down on his belly when his spent muscles gave up on him. Mephiles let out an inaudible sigh, _All of the places Penumbra could have teleported us to-_ the hedgehog then gasped, sitting up abruptly.

His light green eyes searched the area around him, seeing nothing but water, rocks, plants, and more water. No other Mobians. A worried frown grew on Mephy's muzzle as he slowly stood up, _He did transport all of us together, right? But if he did…No…No no!_ The hedgehog stumbled back over to the river bank, falling to his knees and searching the water. He glanced up and down it, finding no one.

He held his head in his hands as he shook it, getting back up to his feet, _No. They…didn't go over. I would've seen them! Right?_ He nodded to himself, _Right._ Taking a stabling breath, Mephiles made his way back up the river. He fell from up there, so that's where the others most likely were. Maybe he was the only one to fall in the water…hopefully he was…

It turned out that he was right (somewhat, since he only saw one person. He chose to believe that Penumbra had separated everyone), for it wasn't long before he saw a blue body splayed out that contrasted the greens and browns surrounding it. Knowing immediately who it was, Mephiles faltered in his step before steeling himself and quickening his pace.

Sonic's form was too close to the river for his liking, so Mephy gently pulled the hedgehog away from the raging water, dropping the limp wrist when he thought the distance was safe enough. The shadow 'hog just stood there for a minute, staring at the hole in the azure hero's chest. His mind backtracked to what happened in Station Square, _all_ of what happened there.

Mephiles gagged a bit when the image of a dead Cream and her family popped into his head, _So so sorry..._ he inwardly apologized as he swallowed whatever threatened to come up. He couldn't think about that right now. The least he could do was help him out, _As if that will pay for what I've done already…Gah! I can't…I can't be thinking about th-them! Because if I do, I'm going to-_

The striped hedgehog turned away and dry heaved, body practically folding in half as he did so.

He wiped his mouth when he was done, breathing in deeply with his nose. Sonic needed help. _Sonic_ needed _help._ He couldn't…He couldn't dwell on the past right now. Mephiles squatted down next to the speedster and put two fingers on the other's neck, feeling a pulse. _He's alive,_ Mephy focused on the still bleeding wound the hero had, _I need to do something fast. But I can't! I'm literally out in the middle of nowhere! How am I supposed to help him?_

 _What if he becomes another corpse I couldn't save?_

 _Another Vanilla?_

 _Another Cheese?_

 _Another Cream?_

 _And Shadow…his death wasn't even my fault and my conscious is somehow giving me heck about him too._

However, before those thoughts got to fester like a dangerous infection, he heard voices from afar:

"-a freakin' rip off!"

"Do you think it's a fake?"

"I don't know! It looked real when we won it, but now-"

"So what are we gonna do about it boss?"

There was a sneaky laugh, "I say we go back and find whoever hosted the race and show him to not mess with us!"

"Yeah!"

"Whoa whoa now, you know that I'm a gal that loves to screw with people's lives, but don't be so hasty. I for one think that it's real."

"Oh really? Give me _one_ good reason why I shouldn't go back there and take compensation."

"Think back to when we got it, _I_ felt the power of that thing and I wasn't the one holding it."

"But look at it now! It's-"

"Basically a worthless piece of junk, I know."

"…Are you gonna be able to fix it boss?"

"What kind of stupid question is that? That's a low even for _you_ , Storm."

By this point, Mephiles could tell that the voices were getting closer. He glanced around before pinpointing where the sound was coming from. There was a line of trees behind him, and the voices were originating from behind them. Thanking Chaos that he had potential help, Mephy jogged to the tree line and watched as a group of three birds slowly walked along a beaten path while carrying some air boards.

To the left of the path was the biggest one of the three, way larger than the hedgehog as well. To the right was a girl, sly and sassy looking. Those two were staring at the one in the middle, a boy holding a dull green…Chaos emerald? Was that the one Penumbra had? No…it wasn't. But why was that gem dim as well?

Mephiles cut off that train of thought, believing that Sonic's health was way more important, even if he behaved like a total jerk (from what he had seen of him anyway. That whole intervention thing had been a mistake). The hedgehog just waited and watched, biding for an opportunity to step in that wouldn't anger them. He _was_ seeking their help after all.

The boy in the middle was glaring at the bigger one. Storm just shrugged, "It was an honest question."

The girl on the other end rolled her eyes, "Ignoring him, I say that we wait it out. What's happening is probably just," she waved her unoccupied hand, "a fad or something."

The green one in the middle rose a brow, "A fad, Wave?"

"You know, a thing that doesn't last long-"

"I know what a fad is!" the boy snapped, "It's just that I doubt that's the right word for this," he then huffed, tossing up the jewel and catching it again, "but whatever."

"Hey boss," Storm spoke up again, "maybe it's still worth something the way it is?"

"Yeah, I'm _sure_ a rock collector would go _crazy_ over this."

Wave tapped her chin, "He has a point Jet," she smirked, "Blue and his annoying posse would probably offer anything to get it."

 _Blue?_ Mephiles wondered, peering back at an unconscious Sonic, _Him? I doubt it. He definitely doesn't have a posse. Or he could somewhere…I have no idea._

Jet chuckled, gripping the gem with newfound fervor, "Heh, that slowpoke will give us what we want and more for this!" he scoffed, "That host is lucky that he's let off the hook." The green bird then threw down his board and hopped on it, the two flanking him copying his movements. Jet glanced between them with a mischievous glint in his blue eyes, "Three laps around this place. Winner gets the most profit from the emerald."

Storm barked out a laugh, gaze determined, "You got it boss! Prepare to lose!"

Wave's smirk just widened, and she brushed back her feathers cockily, "Fine, the dust I kick up would _love_ to meet you."

Jet lowered his goggles and grinned arrogantly, "Ready in five…"

Mephiles' eyes widened to their fullest. They were about to take off! He had waited too long! Swallowing his nerves, the hedgehog burst onto the path, startling the trio of birds for a quick moment. Mephy's hands were up, signaling stop. When he had their attention, he gestured back to where Sonic was laying.

Too bad they didn't care about where he was pointing.

Storm narrowed his eyes at the hedgehog, gears turning in his head, "Hey, isn't that uh…that Shadow guy we've raced a couple times?"

"Yeah, it is – what a minute," Wave floated closer to him, eyeing him up and down. Mephiles immediately felt self-conscious, resisting the urge to take a step back, "No, it's not him. He's someone different," she then created some distance, stare turning defensive and wary, "Someone different who's soaking wet and with blood on his body."

 _Blood on my body?_ Mephy glanced down to see the red liquid slowly oozing out of a couple of injuries he had obtained from the robot that had… He swallowed thickly, _The tumble must have opened them up wider._

"Who cares about _who_ he is?" Jet crossed his arms and glared venom the hedgehog's way, making said mammal cower a little at the heat. He crouched a bit, ears lowering. The bird then hovered his way, scowl forming on his beak, "The important question is _why_ you thought it was a good idea to interrupt our race?" he spat, blue irises flashing.

 _Maybe these aren't the best people to ask for help,_ Mephiles thought to himself before shakily pointing over to where he came from again.

Storm came forward as well, his size alone very intimidating, "Hey! Answer the boss when he's talkin' to you!"

 _Okay, it seems like being passive isn't going to make any progress here, but oh Chaos…what I'm about to do is probably going to earn me a black eye._ With a sudden bout of bravery, Mephiles grabbed the green one's wrist and pulled him off of his board. He ignored the surprised squawk he received, focused only on dragging Jet to where his friend – err, acquaintance? Peer? Stranger? – lay.

He made it almost through the trees before the wrist is yanked from his grasp. The hedgehog turned around only to get punched right in the face, letting out a silent cry as he careened backwards. He cleared the trees before bouncing harshly on the ground, eye painfully stinging. _Yep, there it is..._

"That's what you get for grabbin' me, you idiot!"

When Mephiles sat back up, rubbing his bruised face, his chest fur was grabbed and he was easily lifted into the air. He gasped in pain and struggled to get out of the other's grasp, his legs swinging back and forth. The hedgehog then braced himself when the large bird holding him brought back his other fist, ready to attack again. Jet was beside his group member, smirking nastily, "Maybe next time you won't mess with the Babylon Rogues, eh doofus?"

"Oh hey wait, Jet! Look over here!" At Wave's voice, the bird duo glanced over at her standing over the downed Sonic. She peered over at them before focusing on Mephiles, "Guess the dipstick was trying to show us him."

Jet, seeing the blue hedgehog, scoffed, "Tch, speak of the devil," he gave Storm a glance, "Drop him," and the bulky bird did so, Mephy landing on his rear hard. He mentally hissed, standing back up and rubbing the mistreated part of his body. _They finally noticed him…_

Mephiles followed the two male birds quietly (they had left their boards on the path), face throbbing even more. Yeah, he was sure that he had a black eye. The trio stood at one side of Sonic, the striped hedgehog standing on the other.

Wave scanned the unconscious body before locking gazes with Mephiles, "So you just wanted our attention…by attempting to pull Jet here. Now that was stupid, and your black eye can back me up on that. Why didn't you just tell us?"

Mephy let out a silent sigh before pointing to his throat and shaking his head.

"What…What's _that_ supposed to mean?" Storm questioned.

Wave rolled her eyes and put a hand on her hip, "It _means_ that he can't talk."

"Oh."

Jet was still scowling, "It still gives you no right to freaking _yank_ me!" the bird glared at him again, redirecting it on Sonic after a second. He then gave a smirk that Mephiles did not like the look of before snapping his fingers at Storm, "Pick 'im up. We're headin' back to Metal City," Mephy slumped in relief and Jet saw. He laughed sardonically, "Don't you think we're doing this for free. Slowpoke here owes us one, and well, _you_ have to pay to get a ride back."

Mephiles blinked in shock, _What?_

Jet's grin grew, "You got nothin' on you? Well that's too bad. Guess you have to find your own way back."

 _My own way…What?!_

"Let's go," Jet ordered, walking back to where their boards were. Storm trailed after him obediently with Sonic over his shoulder while Wave stayed for a second. She looked after them before gazing at an inwardly panicking Mephiles. She shrugged, the ghost of a smirk on her face, "Got no compensation, don't expect anything extra from us." The female bird gave him a haughty wave, jogging after the other two.

 _Are they…Are they serious?!_ Mephy was frozen in shock, _But I don't even know where I am! They won't just leave me out here, will they?_ Apparently they would, because none of them were coming back. Jerking into motion, the hedgehog ran after the trio, breaking through the trees just in time see them activating their boards. Mephiles instantly fused with the ground and darted into Wave's shadow just in time. Not a second later, the three birds were off.

* * *

Beep, beep, beep…

… _What?_

Beep, beep, beep…

… _Where…am I?_

Beep, beep, beep…

Dull emerald eyes peeled themselves open, closing back just as quickly when bright light impinged them. A low moan escaped his lips as he slowly regained consciousness. The green irises opened once more and fought to take in their surroundings. There were white walls, quiet machines, and several pieces of furniture near. He was in a hospital. Alright. So the next question was:

Why the hell was he in a hospital?

Sonic moved the blanket that had covered him all the way up to his shoulders off of him, sitting up cautiously in his bed. The hedgehog let out a curse when the movement caused a sharp pain in his chest. He looked down, mind temporarily freezing when he saw the bandages wrapped around his chest.

That was right…he had gotten shot. His hands clenched as he relived that memory, _That robotic asshole got me when I was freaking distracted. The pet had gotten a damn concussion and bat-face had-_ Sonic paused mid-thought and the heartrate monitor beside him increased in frequency. But it was only for a moment before the speedster shook his head, "What am I thinking? Those two had to bring me here. Killed? Yeah effing right."

The hedgehog slowly relaxed his fingers, letting out a deep breath. He had…He had actually thought that he was over for him. Heh, but no. He died hard.

Sonic ran a hand down his face before glancing out of the only window the room had. His brow furrowed in confusion, dropping his arm back into his lap. What he was looking at wasn't Station Square. "Why in the hell…" the speedster threw the blankets off of him and hopped off the bed, shaking his head to get rid of the oncoming lightheadedness. He then strolled over to the window to get a better look, confusion growing when he recognized the city he was in, "Why am I in Metal City? _Again?_ "

Where he fought was nowhere _near_ this place! So why did those two shitheads drag him all the way out here? That didn't make any sense! Sonic growled low in his throat before whirling around and stomping towards the door. However, when he reached out for the handle, the door opened on its own. Sonic was thinking who would take the time to visit _him_ when the answer eventually appeared in the frame.

The glare was automatically set and his quills began to bristle. Mephiles, on the other hand, seemed more than ready to sprint for his life. But for whatever reason Sonic couldn't guess, the striped hedgehog stepped into the room and shut the door back, carefully walking past the speedster to stand in the middle of the space.

The blue hero turned around, teeth clenched and eyes narrowed, to focus on the bandaged newcomer, not even caring about the black eye that decorated the other's face. He took a menacing step forward and inwardly smirked when Mephiles flinched. On the outside however, he was scowling, " _What_ are _you_ doing here, dipshit? Shouldn't you be frolicking with Stripes' _brats?_ "

Mephy actually believed that he was in grave danger just by being in the same _room_ with the hedgehog. Like one wrong move would result in a hidden knife in the stomach or something. Keeping his shaking under control, his reptilian irises scanned the room for any pens and paper he could use, but there was nothing. What was he going to do? Because he sure wasn't approaching Sonic, learning from what happened the last time he tried that.

Well…he had one more option, but he doubted the speedster could understand it. _Everyone_ he had tried it on since he was a small child didn't. Mephiles had actually learned sign language with the help of a very kind librarian in Central City, and Sonic did too…with him. However, no one he tried to use it with (other than Sonic) seemed like they understood. So he saved it as a last resort. If he had nothing to write on, couldn't touch the person, and if he couldn't respond with a one-word answer, he'd attempt sign language. This was actually the first time _ever_ he had to resort to this. And it's been so long…the chances of Sonic still knowing was very low.

But he moved his hands anyway, **"Can you understand this?"**

Sonic's gaze snapped down while they signed. There was a long pause before the hedgehog's heated gaze met his again, "Just answer my Chaos-damned question before I throw you out of the nearest window."

 _Is that a yes? …I'm taking that as a yes,_ Mephy – extremely shocked and relieved – resumed, watching the other's expression, **"I'm here because I have…no idea where anyone else is."**

"I don't believe that for a _fucking_ second," Sonic snarled, baring his teeth. Did that shitstain think that he was stupid? Mephiles was left in that rabbit's house with everyone. He could not tell Sonic that not only was he alone, but he had no clue where the other annoyances were either. The hero took more steps forward, getting in the other's face. Before Mephiles had the thought to melt, there was a hand grabbing his chest and he was in the air…for the _second_ time in the past few hours, "You were _with_ them-"

Mephy held up his hands and hastily signed, **"It's true, I was! But…a lot of things have happened since you fought that robot."**

Sonic narrowed his venomous eyes again, searching, before he let the other go, Mephiles landing on his feet this time. The blue hero glowered down at him, crossing his arms and tapping his foot, "Then _tell_ me what the eff happened, and if you lie to me," Sonic scoffed, "Just _don't_. If you know what's good for you."

The striped hedgehog swallowed the golf ball sized lump in his throat before nodding. He had to be careful here, anything he mentioned could possibly set the other off, **"When you left the r-"** Mephiles paused to calm himself, **"rabbit's house, Shadow took us to Station Square…to fight,"** Sonic stayed silent, just watching with the same scowl on his face. Mephy kept going, **"When we got there, robots were all over. Espio…he killed the Commander of GUN."** No reaction from the speedster, **"The chameleon then ran off; Shadow followed him, leaving us to fight the left over robots."**

Sonic let out a soft hum, and Mephiles felt like a piece of meat in a lion's den. He knew the hero was searching for any lies, but couldn't he be less intense about it? "And I'm assuming that you won that, since your ass is here with me," Mephy hesitated to answer, and Sonic zoned in on his uncertainty, "You _did_ win, right?"

The shadow 'hog gritted his teeth, trying and failing at keeping the food trio's vision of death out of his mind. His hands started to tremble, **"We won the battle, but not…the war."**

"What the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Mephiles cringed at the sharp yell, **"Shadow lost his fight with Espio,"** he signed, ripping the metaphorical Band-Aid off. Sonic froze in his place. Mephy was looking down at the floor now, feeling more than horrible, **"Espio said that he killed him. He…He wasn't the only casualty."** He felt tears forming in his eyes, **"Cream and her…her family didn't…a robot got to them and…"** the shadow hedgie skipped that subject altogether, **"Station Square got destroyed by-"** he then let out a silent shout when a foot suddenly connected with his rib cage, sending him crashing to the ground.

He then found himself in the air, for a _third_ time, the hand gripping his chest pinching and causing him agony. Sonic was glaring hatred and loathing, looking ready to kill, "What did I _fucking_ say about lying?" Mephiles grunted in pain when a fist connected with his stomach, "I can't believe you tried to sell that to me!" He was punched again while the hero snarled in his face, "The only way Stripes would have been killed if he was a complete _dumbass,_ bunny bitch is too focused and irritating to let herself _and_ her annoying little brat die, and Station Square got destroyed? That's a shitty joke," Sonic threw him to the ground.

Wanting to get out of harm's way as quickly as possible, Mephiles swiftly melted into a shadow and slithered to the other side of the room. He only dared to bring half of his body out again. Sonic was scowling at him, and he tried to convince the other, **"I am telling the truth! I…I don't have any** _ **proof**_ **, but…"**

"No, no you _don't,_ " the blue hedgehog spat, "Now, I don't know why or how I got here, but I don't care anymore. I'm going back to Station Square," Sonic cracked his knuckles and gave him a piercing look, "And I don't give a shit about what you do. Just disappear again, for all I care," he smirked nastily, "Since you like doing that so much."

That hurt look on Mephiles' face was exactly that Sonic was going for. The azure Mobian turned away from the other and went toward the door again. However, he was stopped once more from leaving; Mephiles' body was in the way. Sonic was going to smack him to the side, but then the slightly cowering one began to sign, **"You…You can't!"**

The hero breathed out harshly; the 'hog in front of him was walking on thin ice, "Why in the hell can't I?" Mephy didn't respond with words; he just pointed down to Sonic's feet. The bluer hedgehog followed the finger. He stared for a moment at his shoeless socks before huffing, "Dammit," he glanced around his room until realizing that his shoes weren't there. He spun back around on Mephiles, "Where are my shoes? And if you _dare_ say that you took them, you'll get another black eye that matches the first one you got!"

Mephiles shook his head vehemently, **"I don't have them! A bird named Jet does. Him and his crew brought you here, and they said that you owe them. So I guess…that they want something from you? I don't know…"**

Sonic blinked, thrown back, " _They_ brought me here? But…wait no, a _better_ question is when in the hell did that goody-two shoes hawk grow the balls to…" The hedgehog gnashed teeth, "Where are they?"

Mephy dug into the cuff of his glove and pulled out a little note. He handed it over, **"They left this on the stand by your bed before they left."**

Sonic read it and promptly ripped it to shreds when he was done, "The track on the west side of the city, huh?" the hedgehog then went over to the window, reared back a fist, and shattered the glass. Mephiles jumped at the sound, watching – very perplexed – as the shards fall to the ground. The hedgehog picked a sizable one up after wiping his bloody knuckles on the bed. He examined it as he made his way back over to the striped hedgehog.

Mephy totally wasn't ready for the order that came next, "Give me your shoes."

 _What?_ **"What?"**

"Give me your shoes," he repeated more sternly. Sonic tossed the impromptu weapon in the air and caught it expertly, frowning at the other's gawking expression, "What are you waiting for? We don't have all day jackass!"

Mephiles wanted to argue against it, but Sonic was dangerous enough _without_ a weapon. He peeled his old tennis shoes off and held them out to the hero, said hedgehog scowling in disgust when he took them, "I guess these will have to do," he commented as he sat down and began to put them on.

When the speedster in the middle of tying the shoelace of his last shoe, the room's door was opened. Both Mephiles and Sonic glanced up to see a doctor looking between the two hedgehogs and the broken window. She must've had made some sort of connection because she glanced at Mephy weirdly, "Um, you didn't have to break the window to come visit him, sir," when Sonic snorted, she focused on him, "And Mr. Hedgehog! You shouldn't be out of bed yet! You have to-"

"Fuck off," he interrupted her as he stood up, and the doctor flinched back as if slapped. Mephiles felt so bad for her. Sonic scratched his nose, "Whether you like it or not, I'm leaving," he then made a shooing motion at her, "You go run and tell whoever that I've checked myself out." Sonic turned his body toward the window, and Mephy took his chance to dive into the hero's shadow. He felt the heat of the speedster's gaze before he trained it on the flabbergasted doctor, "See ya never," the hedgehog then ran and hopped out of the window, curling into a ball – that stung somewhat – to soften his jump from the second story.

He then uncurled and ran off as fast as he could without ruining the only shoes he had, ignoring all of the pedestrians on the street.

It took less than ten minutes to find the Rogues. They were practicing their tricks on the many ramps of the track. The trio were alone, having driven out anyone else who wanted to ride in that area. Sonic was leaning against a light pole, arms crossed while he observed them on those boards that gave one the illusion of going fast. They were nothing but pieces of floating trash.

The hedgehog kicked off the pole and jogged over to where the leader was. Jet had just finished grinding on a winding rail, landing smoothly back on the ground. The hawk saw him and smirked, hopping off his board and leaning on it, "Check it out Rogues," he called back to the other duo, who stopped in what they were doing to join the green one, "Looks like someone found the letter."

Wave adjusted the bandana on her head, glancing around for someone else, "And that little friend of his isn't with him. Probably still out in Splash Canyon."

Storm barked out a laugh, "He'll find his way out, eventually!"

Jet was blocking them out, eyes glinting in amusement as the hedgehog came closer, seeing his new footwear, "Nice shoes you got there," he said, clearly enjoying himself.

Sonic said nothing as he came closer; his expression was blank.

"Cat got your tongue?" the hawk jeered, "If you want your shoes back, then you have to – gah!"

The hedgehog had the bird's feathers caught in his fist, not likely to let go anytime soon. There was also a sharp shard of glass pressed against the leader's jugular. Sonic tuned out the horrified gasps of the other two birds, increasing the pressure of the made-shift blade. He smirked, "Glad that you finally grew some balls. Congratulations!" the smirk melted into a snarl, "But it was a mistake using them against me. Where are my shoes asshole? You better hurry and tell me before I get upset."

"What in the world?" Wave cried out in surprise.

"L-Let him go!" Storm pleaded.

"On one condition," hard emerald irises narrowed, "And he knows what it is."

"W-Who pissed in your cornflakes?" Jet managed to get out, barely hiding the panic. He pointed over to a bench on the far side of the track, "They're over there! Now let me go you crazy!"

Sonic cocked his head and grinned, "Now was that so hard?" he dropped Jet like a sack of potatoes and ran over to said bench, hurrying to change out his shoes.

The Rogues watched from where they were, Jet rubbing his neck with a confused frown on his face. Storm held out a hand and he took it, standing back up, "What in the heck is the matter with him?"

Wave put her hands on her hips, "He must've had a _really_ bad day," she said as the hedgehog took off, worn shoes still in hand, "I know he likes those shoes, but he just went too far with that."

"Too far? He almost killed the boss!"

"He didn't almost kill me!" Jet snapped back, clenching his fists, "I could've gotten out of that anytime!"

Wave rolled her eyes, "Sure you could've," she turned and got ready to continue riding, "I'm just glad we didn't tell him that we had a Chaos emerald. Who _knows_ what could've happened then."

"I do!" Jet countered with a glare, "I would've taught him a lesson about messin' with us!"

"Whatever you say, Jet."

"I believe ya boss!"

Jet just huffed, _I am so gonna get that hedgehog back…when he's in a better mood, that is._

* * *

Sonic had been running for a while, and Mephiles could tell that his healing injury was preventing him from going full speed. Nothing but grassy hills surrounded them now, the occasional tree popping up from time to time. Mephy was still in the speedster's shadow, basically being carried along as the azure hedgehog went. They had left the city about an hour or so ago, and Sonic had shown no signs of stopping. He was seriously aiming for Station Square.

Mephiles was slightly worried about how the state of the city would affect the hedgehog. Yeah, he practically got beat up by him, but that didn't mean he couldn't care, right? Right. And it was funny how just saying the truth caused all of that. Now if he said that he was cause of the rabbits' death…Mephy didn't know what would happen.

And about that…ugh…He knew that he had decided that being separated from everyone would be best, but now that he actually _was_ , it didn't feel too good. He had gotten used to having friends again. Maybe if he followed Sonic, he'd run into them…somehow. Yes, keeping the secret would tear him up inside, but…maybe he'd build up the courage to tell them one day? Maybe.

Mephiles was then yanked out of his thoughts when Sonic abruptly stopped and threw the extra pair of shoes to the ground, "Put 'em on," he commanded and Mephy obeyed, emerging from the hero's shadow and taking the shoes. He felt the gaze on his back, "Why are you following me?"

The striped hedgehog glanced up from the ground and paused in tying his shoes for a moment, **"You might run into the others. And well…"**

Sonic crossed his arms, wincing when he put too much pressure on his covered wound, "You better hope that we do. You following me around like an annoying-ass puppy will get real tiring real fast."

" **So you're not mad about it right now?"**

The hedgehog twirled the glass he had with his fingers, "I'm pissed the eff off actually. But not as much as I would've been because you're silent and you practically don't exist while I run. So there's that."

Mephy didn't know how to feel about that comment. Before he got to respond to it however, something coming over one of the distant hills caught his attention. He squinted his eyes to see that the thing was moving towards them. It was a vehicle, for sure.

And whoever was in it must've seen them too because he or she started to wave. Mephiles gasped in surprise.

The person waving…was Charmy.

* * *

 **Next chapter…do evil minds think alike?**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer- Only in my dreams...**

 **Warnings- The language will be pretty harsh from this point forward (I don't feel like typing this every chapter XD)**

 **Chapter 11- Ninjas and hedgehogs and crocs, oh my**

Sonic furrowed his brow as he watched Mephiles basically freeze on the grassy ground the striped hedgehog was sitting on, hands frozen in mid-air. The hedgehog had the idea to slap the other to bring him back to reality, but he figured that he would just save the energy and just ask, "What in the hell is wrong with-" he cut off his question when Mephiles suddenly jumped to his feet and began waving.

Completely thrown back, the speedster followed the striped hedgehog's gaze to see a vehicle coming their way. Someone in the passenger seat was waving at them. Hard emerald irises squinted, wanting to obtain more details than the vague outline he was getting right now. Who exactly was in that-

"HEYYY MEPHHYYY!"

Ugh. Nevermind.

It was the endless sugar-high personified, and from what Sonic could now make out, the talking handbag was with him, driving the buggy coming towards them.

The azure hero crossed his arms and started to tap his foot in irritation. Though…he wasn't as annoyed as he could've been, he guessed. He was grateful – oh fuck no, _definitely_ the wrong word there – _curious_ about the two newcomers' appearance. Or better yet, why they (or at least the bee) sounded relieved. What had happened after Sonic 'died'? He wanted a truthful answer to that, not some 'Station Square is destroyed' inane bullshit.

Sonic sharply gazed at the oncoming vehicle, focusing on the bee when the insect took flight, making a beeline straight for Mephiles. Charmy basically tackled the striped hedgehog, nearly knocking the darker 'hog over. Mephiles barely kept his balance, gently pushing the kid off of him. Sonic gritted his teeth at the rapid-fire questions that came after that. Yeah, all of the curiosity was gone now.

"I'm so glad that we ran into you Mephy!" the bee gushed, buzzing all around the softly smiling Mobian, "But what happened to you? Your face? Did Sonic do that? Why are you with him anyway? Where did Nummy teleport you? What-" Sonic almost let out a sigh of relief when Mephiles covered the insect's mouth in jest. Sonic would've just used duct tape to be honest. Or a shoe.

Mephiles let the kid go before making a calming motion with his hands. Charmy got the idea, his mega-watt smile actually waning a bit, "Oh hehe, sorry! Okay um, I have _so_ much to tell you, like first-"

This time, Sonic interrupted him, "Looks like your wish came true _Mephy._ You're reunited with your brats," the bluer hedgehog scoffed before starting to turn away, "I'm 'bout to go, and you better _not_ follow me again dipshit, or…" he gave a malicious smirk as he waved the piece of glass in his possession. Sonic just let his threat hang in the air, taking a step away only to be blocked by the hyperactive bee. The hero scowled, "What are you doing? Get out of the way!"

Charmy flinched a bit at the shout, but he quickly recovered, "You can't go yet! Please?"

"Get _out_ of the way!" Sonic growled anger, rage rising and fingers tensing around the make-shift weapon he had.

"Can't you just not be SELFISH for once your life?" Vector had finally pulled up, turning off the buggy and hopping out of it. The croc went to stand beside Charmy, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes at Sonic, "You don't know how FAR we've come and how much we've been through!" he pointed to his tail, and Sonic was somewhat surprised to see blood on it, "So just…shut up and LISTEN!"

A second later, and Vector had a glass shard pointed at him, dangerously close to his scales. The reptile broke out in a cold sweat, his commanding demeanor breaking a bit. Sonic voice was poison, "No. You listen to _me_ you piece of shit-" the rest of his sentence was lost when his arm was suddenly grabbed. He snapped his head to the side to see Mephiles trying to aim it away from Vector. Sonic snarled before yanking his arm out of the other's grip and elbowing the striped one in the nose. Mephiles staggered backwards, holding his face. Emerald eyes glinted in rage, " _Don't_ touch me."

Charmy gasped before hovering over to Mephiles, checking out the hedgehog's slightly crooked nose. The kid then frowned at Sonic, "Whatcha do that for?! He was just trying to help!"

"Whatthefuckever," the speedster snapped, backing up a bit. He was supposed to be already leaving, but no, these idiots had to get in his way, "I'm gone."

"FINE!" Vector threw his hands in the air, extremely exasperated, "Fine, I guess we will have to find _someone else_ to go save Penumbra!"

At that name, all thoughts of running to Station Square vanished. Sonic glared over at Vector, the look increasing in intensity at the slight victorious grin on the reptile's face, "What do you mean, 'save Penumbra'? And you _better_ not lie to me."

Charmy jumped right on it, mouth going a mile a minute, "It's horrible! We've been riding for forever!" The bee pointed back the way they came, "We were in the mountains and it was snowing and a giant robot dog came out of _nowhere_ and Nummy fought it and he got hurt and then he got trapped! The dog followed us for a bit, but then he turned back!" he said in one breath before inhaling again, giving Sonic puppy-eyes, "You gotta save Nummy! He's in this metal cage that we couldn't get open!"

The expression had the opposite effect on the hero. Sonic glowered at him, "A robot dog, you've gotta be shittin' me," he then focused on Vector's tail, seeing the obvious bite marks there. _A metal mutt, sounds like somethin' that damned doctor would make,_ Sonic glanced the way Charmy gestured to, gears turning in his mind, _Wonder why the pet couldn't take it down. Weak ass,_ "Snowy mountains…"

Charmy beamed, "Yeah! A few hours back that way! But for you it'll take no time at all!" he then paused, looking over Sonic's condition for the first time, "Oh…but you are kinda hurt…"

"Worry about _yourself,_ " Sonic spat venom before getting ready to take off. He was stopped _once again_ when a hand landed on his shoulder. It was the very irritating talking handbag.

"And uh…before you go, I know you don't want me to bring it up, but I'm – _we're_ – sorry about the intervention thing. It was – OOF!" Vector doubled over when a fist met his stomach.

"I said it once, and I'll say it again," Sonic hissed. He was quiet, but that made it much worse, " _Don't touch me._ "

Vector let out a sputtering cough, feeling a gust of wind when the speedster ran off in the direction they came, "Even when he's HURT he can still pack a punch…" he sucked in a sharp breath as he straightened himself back out, rubbing the hurt area, "Man, that's gonna leave a gnarly bruise," the tall croc then focused on a happy Charmy and a pretty beat up Mephiles, both watching Sonic go.

Vector took a step towards the hedgehog, "Despite what just happened, I'm really glad that we ran into you two," Mephiles looked at him before giving a somewhat shy grin, nodding also. Mephy then drifted his gaze down to Vector's tail, pointing at it with his expression twisted up in concern. The green Mobian waved him off, "Yeah, it hurts, but I'll live," He then rose a brow, "But back at you, what happened?"

"Yeah!" Charmy echoed, "You look so beat up! You didn't answer my question before, did Sonic really do that?"

Mephiles let out a breathy chuckle before shaking his head. He walked up to Vector, holding his hand out. Vector let him take it, "Some…other…angry…people…" the croc read, furrowing his brow as he did so, "Well that's not right! No one can be THAT angry!" he rethought his statement, thinking about the 'hog that just left, "Well, that jerk's an exception, but seriously! Did you fight back?"

Mephy shook his head a second time.

"You should've!"

"You could've gave 'em a punch and a kick!" Charmy exclaimed, performing the actions he said in the air. He then did a backflip, "But forget about them! Have you run into any other of our friends?" Mephiles communicated a negative and both cold-blooded Mobians seemed to deflate. A small frown marred Charmy's face, "I hope Silver's okay…"

"I'm sure that lunatic's fine, kid," Vector huffed, "I just wonder where in the world Rogue is right now," he would just pull his phone out and give him a call, but he'd lost it in the mayhem at Station Square.

"Do you think that they're in the same place?" Charmy asked him, going over and settling himself on top Mephiles' head. Said hedgehog wasn't expecting that, but the bee wasn't that heavy, so he let him stay, "Like how me, you, and Nummy was? Sonic and Mephy too?"

The croc scratched his cheek, "Do you know how far we were from him?" he questioned, pointing to the hedgehog, "They could literally be _anywhere_."

"But they could be anywhere together though!"

Vector rubbed his temples. The headache he had on the ride here was unfortunately making a comeback, "Whatever kid, sure," he then focused on Mephiles, who was dragging a finger over one of the bandages on his body, looking distractedly in the direction Sonic left in, "So…Mephy," said shadow 'hog glanced at him when he realized that he was the one being addressed, "Were you two headin' somewhere? Or were you just goin' in a direction like we were?"

Mephy's lime irises shifted off of him and towards another direction, most likely the way the duo were going before he and Charmy showed up. The hedgehog gave a little shrug before holding up his pointer finger. He then took the croc's hand again, "Station…Square…" Vector was surprised, scratching the top of his head, "What? Buy why? It's gone! You know what went down, and the jerk – oh…" the reptile paused, "He doesn't even know what happened. Did you tell him?"

Mephiles nodded.

"…And I'm guessin' that he didn't believe you."

Mephiles nodded again.

"But why though!" Charmy complained, wings twitching. He began to tug on the striped hedgehog's ears, "You're not a liar!" Vector wasn't sure whether he saw the flash of pain on the mammal's face, or if it was his imagination. He didn't comment on it, letting it go. Mephiles then shrugged a single shoulder in a dismissive manner.

The croc heavily sighed, taking in his surroundings for a second, seeing a flock of birds fly overhead. He toyed with the tuff of his glove, "Speakin' about that hedgehog, you think that he's gonna come find us again?"

"Nope!" Charmy piped up, "And that's a good thing I think! Except we won't get to see Nummy…"

Vector just scoffed, "I'm sure we'll see him later. I'm askin' because I'm trying to figure out our game plan now," Mephiles rose a brow at him, silently asking him to elaborate, "If Sonic was likely to come back, well, I would've said to stay here and wait, but since he isn't…Aren't y'all curious about what Station Square looks like now?"

The bee glanced down to meet Mephy's gaze before they both nodded, "Yeah! Like, is that dark stuff still there or not?" The hedgehog frowned and Charmy saw this. He snickered, "I mean, we're not gonna get close to it!"

"Got that right kid. Don't want to relive THAT again," Vector shivered at the horrible memory before trudging back over to the buggy. He cautiously sat in the driver's seat, careful of his injured tail. He beckoned the bee and hedgehog over, "Guess that we should get goin'. And you never know, we might run into some of the other guys there," Charmy's eyes lit up, and a spark of hope rose in Mephiles' chest, "Charmy, you can ride on the back; Mephy, you're takin' shotgun."

The bee took flight, pouting, "But whyyyyy? I like riding in the front!"

"No offense kid, but you talk _way_ too much."

Charmy crossed his arms and huffed, going where Vector told him to go, "Maybe if you would listen, I wouldn't have too…" he mumbled under his breath.

"What was THAT?"

The bee grinned cheekily and sing-songed, "Nothing!"

Mephiles smiled at their interactions before climbing into the passenger seat, getting comfy. Then his expression morphed into a more apologetic one when he turned to face Charmy. Said insect was apparently over the whole thing already, kicking his legs back and forth off the back of the vehicle. Mephy lurched forward harshly when Vector first pressed the gas petal. He gave the croc a wide-eyed look.

Vector barked out a laugh, "'m sorry! The buggy's a little hard to manage at times," Mephiles rolled his eyes and waved him off, focusing on the landscape when it began to roll by. He then glanced the way Sonic left one last time before only looking at what laid in front of them.

* * *

Sonic let out a deep breath when he reached the top of the mountain he had been speeding up, trying to get his heart rate back under control. The meds from the hospital weren't completely out of his system, it seemed. And the slight throbbing of his stitches underneath his bandages weren't helping matters either. But whatever. It'll heal fast enough.

The azure hero felt a chill run down his spine at the breeze that ruffled through his quills, but he didn't let the cold get to him. There were more important things to focus on, like that giant-ass building standing at the base of the mountain, covered with snow. Sonic frowned and rose his hand to protect his eyes from the sun as he peered all the way down there. By the structure, there was this huge heap of metal.

He couldn't tell what it was from up here, but he had a great guess.

And he swore that if those two had sent him up here for no reason, he was gonna find their asses and show them what for.

The hedgehog lowered his hand and sped down the tall landmass, kicking up firm snow in his wake. The cold wasn't intolerable, but it was enough to make his throat feel irritated. He coughed a bit, feet nearly flying from under him when he traversed over a hidden patch of ice. Sonic spat out a curse before regaining his footing, making sure to watch out for any more places he could potentially break something.

Reaching the bottom, Sonic didn't even slow down. He ran right toward the heap of metal, recognizing it as – like the bee said – a giant robotic dog. But it was clearly nonfunctional, with multiple dents in its metal hide and its head basically one with the wall it seemingly collided against. There was smoke spouting out of its flattened forehead.

Sonic eyed the thing as he got closer before snorting, "Looks like the pet got to it before I did," he then pinched the ridge of his nose, lips twitching downward, "Those stupid assholes, wasting my damn time," Sonic let out a puff of air, seeing his breath float away from him, before distancing himself from the destroyed bot, getting a good look at the building beyond it, _The pet might be still in there though. And I owe the sonuva bitch. He saved my life during that fight – more than once – and I absolutely hate him for it. But I still owe him, and letting him bleed to death inside there isn't what I call 'paying someone back'._

With that, Sonic left the dog behind and sped off to look for an entrance to the place. He found one very quickly, but he knew immediately that it wasn't official because it looked like someone tore through the metal wall. The hedgehog approached the shredded metal, strolling past the threshold that separated the cold outside from the cold inside.

He cupped his mouth, "Hey pet, you in here?! Penumbra?" he yelled, not even sure even if the other would respond to that. Sonic heard his voice echo off the internal walls, and gave an irritated growl when he didn't receive an answer, "Of _course_ now I'm gonna have to – Gah! What the-?" the hero had taken a step, but instead of the thud against tile that he expected, there was a squishy sound under foot. He looked down and said the first thing that came to mind, " _Shit,_ " It was blood. A large puddle of it.

Was it Penumbra's? Hell if he knew. It could've been that crocodile's. But…that bite mark the walking handbag had didn't look like it would make this much of a mess. Sonic backed out of the puddle and scrapped as much of the red liquid off the sole of his shoe as he could. Emerald eyes then searched the immediate area, looking for some sort of trail the pet _had_ to leave behind.

There wasn't one, _Now how in the hell did he pull that off? Well, Stripes did have the Chaos emerald, and maybe he gave it to the pet for some stupid reason? If Penumbra had it, that meant that he healed. Damnit, it's gonna be even harder to find him in this place,_ Sonic glanced up and down the hallway he was in before picking a direction, ears pricked to detect any signs of life as he went.

As he explored the building, his curiosity rose. The place seemed like something the Cowardly Egg would build, but there was no reason for the doctor to do it all the way out here. Robots would be a pain in the ass to move from here to the Square.

…Why was he thinking about this? He didn't know, the blandness of the shitty building was making his mind wander.

Sonic turned a corner, and his interest was piqued for the first time since that puddle of blood. There were cages like _everywhere_. Metal ones right in the middle of the hall, one every five meters or so. The hero crossed his arms, "Well, guess that he learned his lesson," Penumbra must've quickened up, avoiding being trapped again. _But who in the hell was Eggman trying to catch here in the first place? Not my ass, for sure._

Sonic was more careful in navigating the structure after that.

Ten minutes later, the hero was about to call off the damn search. There was no trace of the striped hedgehog anywhere, and Sonic was convinced that the pet had just chased after a little rabbit or something and left.

He was a second from finding the nearest exit when he came across what looked like the main office, computer screens and keyboards scattered all over the place. The screens were blank. _No power huh? Let's see about that. Might as well, maybe this trip wouldn't be a complete waste of time,_ Sonic walked up to the many devices and just started pressing buttons, _Maybe I can find out what his plan is now, since that invasion didn't do shit,_ the speedster mentally paused, mind going back to what Mephiles told him. He shook his head, _Yeah, it didn't do shit._

Sonic hit a lot of buttons that didn't do much besides click, but then one was different, clicking and also making the nearby screen flicker before illuminating. It wasn't of the best quality, but the hedgehog could still make out what was being shown to him. The screen being somewhat above his head, Sonic leaned forward to stand on his toes, looking at the slightly glitched picture of a map. It was in black and white, the words 'Plans for Westopolis' where stretched across the top.

"That's where he is," Sonic instantly thought, but the problem was that, "Where the hell is Westopolis?"

The static then covered the monitor before the picture went out. Sonic frowned, pressing the button again, but nothing came up. Oh well. He knew the name of the place…that was somewhere. He could ask (command) for directions.

Normally he wouldn't do the chasing, but let's just say that…he didn't like the idea of his city being in danger, so he was gonna make sure that there was no way in hell that even the _plans_ for another envision would be _thought_ of _._

Sonic nodded to himself before zooming off.

* * *

"And _what_ gave you the _brilliant_ idea to bring him here?!"

"If I did not, then the robot would have exploded. My mission would have been a failure. I could not let that happen, so I brought him here."

"Well, if you hadn't cut my connection, you insufferable robot, then I would've told you to take care of him! Now the _enemy_ knows where my base is!"

"They would have figured it out eventually doctor. They always have. Are you not content that I have brought to you the Master Emerald energy emitter?"

"I _would_ have been, if you had used those microchips of yours and not bring one of the blue rodent's _friends_ down here!"

"…I have brought three, technically."

Espio thought that it was quite interesting that Eggman and Metal Sonic were having their conversation right in front of him.

He was currently in what was supposed to be Eggman's main office; Metal had led him there. The room had blinking numbers, moving screens, and flickering lights lining the walls, all seeming to serve some type of purpose. There was a large padded swivel chair in the middle, formerly occupied by the scientist present.

Espio wasn't the only one observing the interaction. Omega was standing tall behind him, his metallic body parked under in the door way, leaving little room for anyone to slide through if they wanted to exit. In the mech's working arm was Cream. Metal had passed the rabbit over when Eggman spotted them and began to yell at the blue bot. The bunny was out-cold, the Sonic doppelganger having knocked her out because she was making so much noise on the flight over. Espio was glad he did.

Even though the chameleon believed that this little spat the duo in front of him were having was entertaining, so say the least, Espio was also busy watching the doctor. It was painfully obvious that something was wrong here, actually, multiple things. One, Eggman shouldn't be alive. Two, Eggman had never built Metal Sonic nor this whole base, to his knowledge. Three, Eggman had succumbed to the strange amnesia as well – even though Espio had a gut feeling that his diagnosis was way off. And four, Eggman was different. Like how Tails and Cream were different.

The doctor, even when Espio had first met him, was never this…intense. He still schemed, of course, but he was more reserved. Not much, but the chameleon could detect the change. Espio's encounters with others had been strange ever since he had dropped from the sky.

This was a mystery he had to solve, asap. And to do that, he was going to go with the flow for now. Stay in the background and watch. Until he deemed it was time to jog the doctor's memory again.

At Metal's last statement, Eggman must have figured that arguing with the robot would do him no good, because he simply dropped the subject in order to turn to the trio standing off to the side. The rotund man stroked his mustache as he looked over Cream, then Omega, and then finally Espio, zeroing in on the chameleon's most noticeable injuries, "So you – unfortunately – have," Eggman took a step forward, glasses glinting in the light as he stared Espio down, "Where are the rest of your meddlesome _friends_? Surrounding us? Breaking in as we speak?"

Espio stared right back at him, chin raised, "I have no friends. Certainly not the ones you are referring to."

Eggman narrowed his eyes behind his spectacles, pursing his lips, "Why should I believe you?"

"Because they mean nothing to me. In fact, having them buried six feet under would make me the happiest," Espio smirked nastily before gesturing over at the unconscious bunny, "If my words aren't enough, then she's my proof."

The doctor glanced at Cream, and then back at the chameleon, "Ho ho! This can very well be a trap! Convincing me that you 'kidnapped her' only for your little posse to come and attack while you _and_ her are on the inside!"

"Really?" Espio tilted his head patronizingly, "Because that's not the case. I've taken her so I can get close to my targets to take them out," he bobbed his head toward Omega, "I've already tried once."

Eggman was a bit shocked at that, "You have? How?"

Espio glanced over at Metal Sonic to see the mech staring right at him. The chameleon had to be careful; he didn't know the full abilities of the robot. He could be a walking lie-detector, "I ordered Omega to attack them. You can tell by his condition what happened."

"Omega?" The doctor looked over the red and black robot again, "So you somehow reprogrammed him?"

The reptile blinked in genuine confusion, "Reprogrammed? No, I built him-"

"Built? What-" Eggman began, but Metal cut him off:

"He's telling the truth doctor," red opticals drifted away from Espio's body and focused on the human in the room, "Every word he said has happened, and will happen if he is given the right opportunity."

The scientist was quiet for a moment, thoughts bouncing around his head as he observed his newest visitors. Espio let him do it. Trust was hard to build, but it felt empowering to tear it to pieces. He just had to wait for the right time.

"What happened to you?"

Espio knew immediately what he was talking about, "I was attacked. My eye was slashed out, and that same person broke my arm," it was stretched, but it was the truth nonetheless.

Eggman went back to petting his 'stache, "And who attacked you? One of your – _Sonic's_ friends?"

 _So he thinks that Sonic is sociable too…which he is, from what I've heard of him recently. Which is very confusing. Hopefully that question will be answered quickly as well,_ "Yes," Penumbra was working with Shadow, and Shadow was in same vicinity as Sonic sometimes, so it wasn't necessarily a lie, "His name is Penumbra, looks very similar to Shadow the hedgehog."

The scientist seemed to tense up. He and Metal shared a look that Espio didn't miss, "You know Penumbra?"

Espio nodded, "Like I said, he attacked me. Destroying my vision and breaking my arm. He's one of the ones I want to kill the most."

At that, a grin grew to a near impossible length on Eggman's face, "Oh ho ho! Well, you can't do that yet!"

The chameleon frowned, "And why not?"

"Because I'm going to use him, of course! My own personal weapon; him being dead will ruin my future plans!"

Espio's body went stock-still. _His own person weapon? Does that mean…_ "Do you have him here?" he didn't think it was possible, but the grin widened. Vengeance filled the chameleon's system, threatening to overflow and causing him to tear the place up so he could finally see the life drain from that hedgehog's body. But no, he willed it down. He had to wait, and if Eggman was going to use him, maybe Espio could too before he killed him, "Are you willing to show me?"

Eggman faced Metal Sonic, "Are you _completely_ sure that he is telling the whole truth?"

"Affirmative, doctor."

"Very well!" The man brushed past Espio and left the room after Omega stepped out of the way, "Follow me, new recruit!" The ninja just stared for a swift moment before doing so, Omega falling in step beside him. Metal Sonic was bringing up the rear, and Espio kept an eye on him. It wouldn't take much to kill the chameleon with his guard down.

No conversation was made, the only sounds being the various footsteps of the occupants of the underground base. Not five minutes passed before Espio was standing in front of a window, glaring at one of the banes of his existence. Penumbra was curled up in a corner of the room, facing the walls. He couldn't tell if the other was asleep or not. What he _could_ see however was the occasional twitch of a random body part. An arm, a leg, etcetera.

"How do you plan on controlling him, doctor?" Espio asked at last.

"I'm glad that you asked!" Eggman strolled haughtily toward the door of the room, gesturing over at him, "Come with me inside. Metal, you and Omega stay out here. I won't need you if my guess is correct."

"It is your life, doctor," Metal clipped.

"And I plan on keeping it," Eggman retorted back just as snappily as the robot. Espio didn't acknowledge it, keeping silent as the door slid open after the man's hand was scanned – he made a mental note of that – and as the pair entered.

If Penumbra wasn't awake before, he sure was now.

He was snarling from his corner on all fours, blazing eyes locked on Espio. The ninja wasn't even sure if the other knew that Eggman was in the room as well. Espio locked gazes with him, not looking away. He saw recognition in those irises. Good. He smirked and Penumbra was ready to kill.

"He seems to recognize you," Eggman commented. The hedgehog glanced at him for a moment before refocusing on Espio.

"Of course," he responded and Penumbra's growls increased in volume. Espio looked over at the doctor, "Are you going to show me, or…?"

"Just wait!" Eggman laughed before pulling out a remote with buttons on it. The snarls instantly got quieter. Espio's brows rose, looking between the pleased doctor and the cautious Penumbra who was now eyeing the remote warily, ears pressing against his head and tail lowering between his legs. "Ah yes! I've only used it once and there are already positive effects!"

 _I have to get my hands on that remote as soon as possible,_ "How does it work?"

"Electricity," Eggman supplied, "Like how pet dogs have shock collars, he has an imbedded shock device near his collarbone that gives him a jolt whenever he's been a 'bad boy'," the man gestured to Espio, "Get closer to him."

Espio narrowed his eye. _Gain trust,_ With that in mind, he slowly approached the hedgehog, who was glaring at him again with bared canines. He wasn't growling nearly as much as before. However, the closer he got, the closer the other became to snapping. He was approximately six steps away from the other when Penumbra lunged.

He barely got off the ground before his body started convulse.

Espio stared in slight shock – pun not intended – at the hedgehog. Then he inwardly grinned.

Penumbra was moving his trembling limbs as best as he could, going back to the corner. He curled up into a ball, static electricity ravaging his body.

The ninja peered over his shoulder at a proud Eggman, "That's…an impressive plan you have there."

"Of course!" the doctor boasted, watching his weapon cower. He then switched his gaze to Espio, and then to the mirror that was one-way. He tapped his chin, "So he knows you," the ninja nodded, _Obviously,_ "But does he know Cream?"

"He should," Espio responded, wondering where the other was going with this.

"Let's leave," Eggman suddenly said, and the chameleon trailed after him. The man used his hand again to open the door and the two were now back in the hall. Metal and Omega were conversing:

"It is not going to take much to break him."

"BREAK HIM? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"

"Right now, he has a choice to obey or not. When we break him, that choice will be eliminated. He'll follow without question."

"SO EGGMAN HAS NOT BROKEN YOU THEN."

"And you have been."

 _Yes he has,_ Espio thought, _and you'll follow in his footsteps._ Beside him, Eggman scoffed, "Believe me, I've tried. But there is _always_ some amount of attitude in him. He gets _that_ from the annoying rodent."

Espio filed that for later, "So why did we leave?"

"Because I'm curious. Omega, throw the rabbit in there with him."

"What? What is the point of that, doctor?" Espio and Metal questioned at the same time, sharing a look.

Eggman just let out a boisterous laugh. He then noticed that Omega wasn't moving, "Aren't you going to do it?" Espio rolled his golden iris before subtly nodding to his robot. Omega instantly moved, going over to the door and waiting for Eggman to open it again.

He tossed Cream inside once it was, and the room was sealed off again. The quartet moved over to the window and watched the bunny rouse herself, the impact bringing her back to reality. She was confused for a moment, then her situation seemed to kick in. Tears streamed down her face, arms and legs still tied together. Her sobbing gained the attention of Penumbra, who was slowly recovering from the shock.

He looked at her for a while, not moving, but then he painstakingly uncurled himself. His movement alerted Cream of his presence, and the bunny cried out in surprise, then delight, and then sorrow at realizing that 'Shadow' was trapped too.

Penumbra seemed like he didn't know what to do, but he recognized her, that was clear. He cautiously crawled over to the bunny, limbs shaking. When he was in front of her, Cream stared pleadingly at him, words blocked by the tie in her mouth.

The hedgehog cocked his head before taking his claw and snapping the vines around her ears, ankles, and mouth. The rabbit was blubbering, turning her back to him so he could untie the piece of cloth there. Penumbra just shredded it. Cream swiftly picked up the Chao's bow tie that was in her mouth before throwing herself at Penumbra, hugging him and crying into his shoulder.

The hedgehog was frozen, eyes wide as they stared at the far wall. It took a long moment, but his arms eventually wrapped themselves around her and tightened marginally.

Espio still didn't get why Eggman let this happen. "Why?" he asked him.

"So it'll hurt her more when she realizes what we are going to use him for," Eggman replied, rubbing his hands together in a typical bad guy fashion.

 _That's taking a page out of my book,_ "I understand that, but now she's free and mobile."

"If you're worried about either of them getting out, don't be," Eggman's stomach jumped as a chuckle escaped his lips, "Those walls can't be broken, and they can't open the door without _me._ So it's full-proof!"

"THE DEFINITION OF FULL-PROOF CAN VARY FROM PERSON TO PERSON." Omega commented and Eggman glared at him.

"You're as bad as Metal! You better learn some respect before I dismember you!"

Omega went silent, and Espio gave Eggman an irritated look.

Metal piped up, "You cannot do that doctor. Did you forget about the Master Emerald energy?"

"Oh right! I've forgotten!" the human focused on Espio, "Why _does_ he have that energy inside of him?"

"To make him more durable," he answered simply.

"Hm…" Eggman hummed, cradling his chin with his pointer finger and thumb, "I may have to try that in the future…" he then turned on his heel and started to head back the way they came, "Let's go back to my office, we have lots to discuss!"

 _Yes, lots,_ Espio mentally reiterated as he nodded to Omega again, the robot following the scientist.

That was until a sonic boom sounded from up above.

Everyone whipped their heads up to the ceiling. The first one to move was Metal. His began to separate himself from the group until Eggman stopped him, "No. Metal do _not_ go up there. I know what you're thinking, and I would normally agree with it, but he can't _possibly_ find us down here. And we have too much to lose if you show yourself, confirming whatever he's thinking," the robot was literally shaking, itching to go up to the surface. There was a growl in Eggman's voice now, "Metal Sonic, _stand down._ "

It took a while, but the bot calmed back down, "Fine, doctor. But I have permission to take action if the blue rat does find us?"

 _I don't think it really matters what Eggman says,_ Espio mentally pointed out, learning the personalities, _Metal will do it anyway._

"Yes, you have permission to target him, but _if_ and _only_ then," the man replied (more like commanded) before he continued his way back to his office, Omega trailing him once more.

Espio just stood there, thinking about the iffy relationship between Metal and the doctor. That was until the former interrupted his thoughts, "What are you waiting for?" Metal questioned from behind him, the hidden meaning of 'get a move on' easily understood.

"I'm going," the ninja nearly snapped back, but not before peering over at the mirror one more time.

Penumbra was staring their way, ears perked and glare set. Cream had cried herself back to sleep in his arms.

* * *

 **Next chapter…repetition is key!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer- I take back what I said here in the last chapter. Owning them in my dreams? Pfft, not even then…**

 **Chapter 12- Double-checking**

Vector let out a huge yawn as he put his jeep into park, stretching his arms afterwards. After hearing a couple of satisfying pops, the croc glanced over at the one in the passenger seat, "Welp, we're here."

Espio, just waking up when the vehicle had stopped moving, nodded lethargically while he rubbed his eyes. The chameleon then peered into the back, seeing the rest of their party still sleeping. Knuckles was sitting on the left, softly snoring with his face against the door like he had been the entire trip back. Amy was on the right, head drooped forward, breathing steadily. Charmy was squished in the middle, loudly snoring on the pink hedgehog's shoulder.

"Oh _man,_ " Vector sighed out, looking at the sign 'Chaotix Detective Agency' hanging over the cozy building's front door. He took the key out of the ignition. The moon was the only source of light at the moment, "I can't _wait_ to go inside and collapse on my bed."

Espio completely agreed, "Same here. We've had a pretty…unrewarding day," he commented quietly, going back to how their 'job' went. He then focused on the pink and red Mobians behind them, "Well, unrewarding except for those two. Interesting that we ran into them." _Or rather, that they ran into us._

Vector sleepily eyed him; there would have been more skepticism present if he was more awake, "You still goin' with their story? Being from another place?" Amber irises stared back at him, easily communicating, _Why would my opinion change between then and now?_ The croc just shook his head a bit, unbuckling his seatbelt, "'m too tired to argue right now. You get the logs up," he yawned again as his opened his door, stepping out and waving lazily, "See ya in the mornin'."

The door shut and Espio watched as the green reptile approached their home, fumbled with his keys, and finally stumbled his way inside. The ninja then gazed at the ones in the back seat, wondering if Vector _was_ right about all this. He shook his head. No, he was going to trust his instincts; he believed that they were telling the truth, so he was going to stick with that.

Letting out a small puff of air, the chameleon reached back and started to nudge Charmy. It took a bit of an effort, but the kid eventually woke up, wiping away the drool dripping out of his mouth. Glassy eyes were trained the ninja's way. Espio bobbed his head toward the house, "We're home."

"Okaaayyy…" the bee drawled out, more asleep than awake, "I'm sooo tiirrrreeed."

"I know," Espio undid his seatbelt and began to get out of the jeep, "Hurry and wake Amy so you can get out and go to bed. I'll get Knuckles."

"Okaaayyy…" Charmy repeated before shaking the female hedgehog, "Waaake uuuuup…"

The chameleon hopped out and stretched his back a little. He then went over to the echidna's door and opened it, grunting in surprise when the red mammal slumped right out of the vehicle. Espio quickly caught Knuckles' upper half before reaching out to release the other's safety harness. "This would be immensely easier for me if you'd wake up," Espio strained out when he suddenly had around ninety pounds of echidna in his arms. The only answer he received was a snore. Espio sighed and eventually got Knuckles out of the jeep and onto his feet.

Figuring that nothing he was willing to do was going to wake the powerhouse, the ninja just wrapped his arms around the red one's chest and dragged him in the direction of the home/workplace.

Amy was standing in front of the vehicle, carrying a knocked-out Charmy on her back. Seeing this, Espio resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The child couldn't even last a minute. The hedgehog was scanning the outside of the house drowsily, but it seemed like she was waking up quickly. When she saw the chameleon getting closer with a mumbling Knuckles, Amy sighed in exasperation, "I'm not even surprised. After all that we've been through _and_ with how he is, I think he's gonna be out for a week."

"So he's lazy all of the time?" Espio asked and Amy nodded in amusement. He glanced down at the echidna gone to dreamland, "That seems…unproductive."

The pinkette scoffed, adjusting the drooling (ew) bee on her back, "You don't know half of it."

The chameleon paused on his way inside. He continued to stare down at the red Mobian, brow slightly furrowed, "Well, from what you've told me, he doesn't protect the Master Emerald. At least, not actively," he then trained his golden gaze onto her, "And that's what jump-started the…turmoil that you all had to go through."

Amy's face fell a little, and she looked away, "It…It's not _his_ fault, if that's what you're thinking," she turned back to him, fire in her jade irises, "It's all Espio's! Er…the other one's! If that chameleon had never…if he'd never…" the pinkette sucked in a deep breath, "…then Cream would still be alive…" she added softly.

This was news to Espio; she had withheld that information before, "So I, well, the other me, killed her?" he asked just as quietly, a hint of _something_ building within him. He didn't know what it was. Justice, vengeance, or just something as simple as anger. Yes, he didn't know their Cream, but he pictured the one he knew being killed – by his _own hands_ nonetheless – and he couldn't help but feel a certain type of way about it.

Amy didn't answer him verbally; she just gave him a minute nod. The pinkette then sucked in a breath and wiped away the tears that threatened to form, a shaky smile growing on her muzzle, "B-But back to Knuckles," _A topic change,_ Espio thought, _I'll accept it,_ "The one you know is more outgoing, so _hopefully_ he's basically more _awake_ than this one is."

"How do you know about-" Espio paused, thinking back, "Right, Shadow told you about all of us."

"Speaking of Shadow…" Amy was _really_ relieved that he was alive, you know, somehow. But she wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth, "You said that he's in the hospital right?"

The chameleon gave her an unexpected shrug, "He should be, but he could be anywhere. He isn't the most…rational of individuals."

The female hedgehog giggled, "You're telling me…" She glanced up at the full moon, enjoying the slight breeze. Hearing dragging, she lowered her head to see Espio resume his trek to the front door with the dead weight in his hands. Amy chewed on her bottom lip for a moment, thinking, before choosing to risk it, "Hey Espio," the ninja glanced back, brow raised in question, "How far away is Station Square from here?"

He tilted his head at the somewhat strange question, "A handful of miles away. Takes about fifteen minutes to get there. Why?"

"I was wondering if you could take me and Knuckles there," Amy suggested, imagining what her city looked like and wondering how different the one here could look, "I want to see if it changed or not, and the city looks _amazing_ at night! So can we?" At the other's stare, Amy reeled herself back in, "Or we could just see in the morning when we go to the hospital…"

It was quiet for a minute before Espio responded, "I don't see why not. I agree with you; the city is at its best after sunset, and I'm practically awake now," he sat Knuckles on the ground, seeing the echidna slump into himself, and then went over to Amy, "Let me have Charmy so I can put him to bed, then I'll be right out."

The weight was lifted of the pinkette's back, "Vector'll let you drive the jeep?"

"I doubt he made it to his bed and crashed on the living room couch. What he doesn't know, won't hurt him," Espio cracked a smile before disappearing inside the home with their youngest member.

Amy watched him go, not believing how she had basically made friends with her worst enemy (in a sense). Like just…wow. How could two people that are one-in-the-same be so different?

Pushing to the back of her head how trippy her life had become, the pinkette strode over to Knuckles, wanting to at least make an attempt to wake him up. She snapped in his face. No response. She clapped. No response. She yelled. Still no response. Amy huffed – _Why am I even doing this? He's probably gonna go right back to sleep in the jeep –_ before slapping him, stepping back when the echidna jumped up and languidly raised up his clenched knuckles.

Knuckles barely looked conscious as he focused on the hedgehog, "Oh…it's just you Amy…" he yawned, dropping his hands, "In that case," he glanced down and examined the grass at his feet, "the ground looks comfortable enough…"

"Oh no you don't!" Amy grabbed the echidna's arm, keeping him standing. She guessed that there was one good thing about Knuckles being lazy; for him, it took too much effort to try to free himself, "We're going on a ride with Espio in a minute to this world's Station Square! Don't you want to see it too?"

"A ride? That's fine with me," Knuckles muttered before trudging his way over to the jeep. He jumped into the back seat, not bothering with the door. He was asleep again in seconds.

Amy put her hands on her hips, annoyed, "I bet those are the only words he heard me say!" she sighed, "Well at least he's coming with," she then turned around when the sound of a door shutting and keys jiggling reached her ears. Espio walked back out of the home, and – after locking the front door – unknowingly followed in Knuckles' footsteps and jumped into the driver's seat.

"Hop in," he said as he cranked the vehicle up.

The pinkette scrunched her nose up, "I'll just get in the _normal_ way, thanks," she responded, opening the car door and shutting it back. Espio just inwardly scoffed at her actions before driving off.

After about ten minutes of comfortable silence (well, ignoring Knuckles' snores) Espio surprised Amy when he suddenly stated, "I can't help but to find this sort of…strange."

The hedgehog ripped her gaze from the stars above to the chameleon at the wheel, seeing amber orbs stare straight forward. Amy waited for him to elaborate, but when he didn't, she replied, "What do you mean? Wanting to see Station Square? Knuckles sleeping back there like he's in a coma?" _Shouldn't have compared him to that…_

The ghost of a grin appeared on his face, "No, not any of that. It's just I can't figure out why you and Knuckles trust me so easily."

Amy pursed her lips, "You _are_ a nice person…"

"Thank you," Espio swerved around a pothole in the road seen by the headlights, "But that's part of my point. I'm someone with morals, but you've been around a version of me who doesn't for a lot longer. How can you be around me?"

Amy rubbed her arm and looked at the passing trees, "I don't really know, to be honest. It's trusting you that got us in trouble in the first place…" she mumbled, recalling first meeting the evil Espio and how 'helpful' he wanted to be, "Maybe it's because I really want you to be good this time…? I guess like a second chance thing."

Espio hummed, "Do you think that you made the right choice?"

"Definitely!" She smiled over at him, "You do seem nice, like _genuinely_ nice. Our Espio always had seemed off, now that I look back on it. You're way better than him, for sure."

The chameleon glanced over at her, "I could always be acting."

Amy tensed up for a millisecond before waving him off, "Was that you trying to scare me? If Shadow says you're good, you're good. And plus I highly doubt Charmy would be hanging around you if you were a bad guy."

"Who's to say that Charmy's not out for blood too?"

"Oh please, the only thing he's out for is chocolate," the pinkette laughed, and Espio couldn't stifle his own chuckles either.

"We're almost there," the ninja commented when he got his mirth under control. He pointed out in the distance, the lights and skyscrapers identifying Station Square. Espio increased their speed, "Shouldn't be long now, a minute or so. See any differences from here?"

"No not yet," Amy squinted her eyes, excitement growing. It could be all for nothing, everything could be the same, but the Square was still pretty at night, so it didn't really matter that much, "I don't think I'll be able to until we get inside. Ooo!" a new idea just came to her, "After we look around inside, we should totally check out where my house is! I want to know what's there now!"

"Sure. I don't have anything else to do tonight, except sleep," Amy frowned over at him, feeling a bit guilty, but then Espio grinned, "I'm kidding. It's fine, really."

The hedgehog huffed, crossing her arms, "It's hard to tell if you're joking, you know!"

"Hey Amy…quiet down would you…"

Said Mobian whirled around in her seat to glare at Knuckles – _Oh_ _ **now**_ _he wakes up to my voice_ – but he was already gone again. She tisked and turned back to the front, "Do you see what I had to deal with before we found you?"

"I'm actually glad that he doesn't have Knuckles' personality," Espio admitted as they entered the city's limits. Amy immediately went wide-eyed, seeing the familiar sights. Nothing different yet, but she never knew. Espio just cruised, not really interested. He continued his train of thought, "Because if he did, he would've attacked as soon as he saw me. Not all of that sneaking around that you two did would've happened."

"Really?" Amy giggled, seeing stores that she would shop at in her home world. Maybe this place _was_ the same. She faced him, not feeling bad about the visual of Knuckles beating Espio's face in. The bad one's of course, "Shadow said that he was hotheaded, but wow!"

Espio's lips twitched, "It's amusing that it came from Shadow's mouth. That hedgehog…"

He trailed off, and Amy, who had glanced away again to look at their surroundings, glanced over at him in confusion, "What's wrong?"

The ninja's brow was furrowed as he stared at something in the distance, "Amy, what is the chance that Vector and Charmy got another vehicle and beat us to the city?"

The pinkette blinked a couple times, "What are you…" she then followed his gaze and gasped in surprise. A buggy was parked in a gas station parking lot up the street. Vector, Charmy, and Mephiles were sitting in/on it and were staring at everything in awe. They haven't noticed Espio and Amy yet. "It's…It's…!" she was so shocked that she couldn't get her words out.

"And is that…Shadow?"

"Shadow? No! That's Mephiles! Oh my gosh, they're here! They're from our world! They're here!"

Espio frowned as he turned into the parking lot, still going unnoticed by the bee/croc/hedgie trio. Mephiles? He had heard that name before. A memory finally popped up, one where Knuckles was filling him and the rest of the Chaotix in with what happened during an adventure a while ago. So Mephiles was good in the other world. It's kind of funny that he and Espio would meet. Wait a minute…speaking of meetings…

"Will it be alright for them to see me?" Espio asked Amy as they got steadily closer to the others.

"Oh…" Amy hadn't thought about that. Hopefully she and Knuckles would be enough to keep them from coming after him, "It'll be alright! They'll like you soon enough anyway," she then sat up straight in her seat and started waving when Espio parked right beside them. She got out of the jeep, "Hey guys! Great to see you here!"

Three heads whipped in her direction. There was a second of speechless surprise until Charmy was the first to erupt, "Amyyy!" he took flight and nearly tackled her with the force of his hug. He then buzzed around her head, "Yay! You found us! Awesome!"

Vector let out a loud relieved laugh at the sight of her as he got out of the buggy, "Welp, one down, alotta more to go!"

Mephiles stepped out after them, walking up shyly and giving her a small smile. Amy instantly noticed how beat up he was, and her glee melted away, "Mephy! What happened to you?"

Vector huffed, crossing his arms, "Charmy and I dropped together, but Mephy had dropped with _Sonic,_ " he said as if the name alone gave the explanation needed. It did.

"Of course…" Amy growled under her breath, "I think you dropping by yourself would've been better than being with that jerk."

"He shoulda been with us!" Charmy added.

Espio, still unnoticed in the jeep, observed the bee and crocodile. He couldn't name any major differences yet, but if he had the choice to choose which ones were his, he was sure he'd pick the right pair.

"How'd you get here Amy? That jeep looks famili – IS THAT ESPIO?!"

Especially now.

Vector had his fists clenched, more than ready to launch at the chameleon to teach him multiple lessons. Charmy looked conflicted, like he wasn't sure if he wanted to stay and fight or just flee. Mephiles was terrified, shaking and a second away from running for the hills.

"Hey hey!" Amy called out, getting between the trio and the ninja in the jeep, "Calm down! Espio's not who you think he is! He's a good guy!"

Vector eyed her warily before glaring at Espio, "As IF! What did you do to her!? I don't know how you healed, but you're about to get roughed right back up bub!"

"No stop! Seriously!" Amy tried again, "He didn't do anything to me! If you'd just let me explain-"

"That he hypnotized you?" Charmy cut her off, still looking unsure.

"Ugh!" The pinkette pulled her quills before turning on her heels and going over to the sleeping echidna in the backseat, "Knuckles! Wake up! Help me out here!"

"Huh?" the red mammal woke up, wiping wetness from the side of his mouth. He blinked multiple times, taking in the three Mobians who are ready for action in front of him, "Oh hey. Glad that we found you."

"KNUCKLES?" Vector shouted, making both the echidna and the chameleon wince, "Why are you ridin' with Espio too!?"

"This is so weird!" Charmy waved his hands crazily in the air. Mephiles looked less likely to run away now, but he was still assessing the situation cautiously.

Knuckles let out a tired sigh, violets shifting over to Amy, "You tried explaining it to them?"

"Key word: _tried!_ They won't let me talk!"

The former guardian groaned before getting out of the jeep, popping his back after he did so. He then folded his arms in front of his chest, really not feeling this leadership thing again. Hopefully it was only temporary and he could go back to sleep. "Despite what he looks like, he's not the Espio that we've unfortunately gotten to know," Vector opened his mouth, but Knuckles kept going before he got cut off, "We're in a different world. When Penumbra Chaos Controlled us, he sent us to a different dimension where there are alternate versions of us. Remember when Shadow told us about his world? Yeah, well this is it," he glanced around, taking in the area, "And that's the only reason why Station Square is still standing right now."

Done with his speech, Knuckles lazily waited for the newcomers to react to it. The trio stared at him, then at the city, and then at each other. Mephiles was the first. He approached Amy and silently asked for her hand. She gave it to him and read out what he wrote, "I…believe," Amy was surprised he was the first one because he was the only one _not_ there at the campfire when Shadow shared info. She smiled at him, but it waned when he continued to give Espio nervous glances. Mephy believed them though, and that's what mattered. He'd get used to the quiet chameleon eventually.

Charmy wrung his hands together, looking between Knuckles and Espio before hovering over to the latter, examining him, "Are you sure you're not a bad guy?"

Espio nodded, "Yes, I'm sure," he then decided to help out a bit, "Amy and Knuckles told me what happened in your world," ambers drifted over to a skeptical Vector, "I would never do any of that. I'm truly sorry for your loss."

The bee narrowed his eyes before blowing a raspberry in the chameleon's face, causing the ninja to wince and rub away the spittle in irritation. However, it seemed like he passed the test because Charmy grinned, "He's not a bad guy!" he announced, "Espio would've _definitely_ attacked me if I did that to him!"

 _What kind of test was that?_ Amy thought, flabbergasted.

"I'm still not sure we can trust him!" Vector opposed sharply, fists still at the ready, "I've done it once before and I'm not makin' that mistake again!"

Knuckles and Amy looked at each other, both exasperated, "Okay how about this, you follow us back to Espio's place!" the hedgehog suggested, "There's another Vector and Charmy there."

The bee gasped, "There is?! Cool!" he turned to the croc, "Vector, we have to go! We have to go! We have to go!"

Mephiles glanced up at Vector, thinking that they should visit too. He didn't know what Amy was saying about Shadow, but the only thing that sold him was the explanation of why Station Square was here. Sure, being in another…dimension was farfetched. But that explained it. And plus, Espio – even though he was still intimidating – wasn't slitting their throats. That's enough evidence right there.

Vector was thinking however, going through the pros and cons of this situation. Pros: they meet their doubles, get to know this Espio, and have a bigger group to help search for the others. Cons: they all die.

See his issue here?

"Grr…FINE!" the croc finally answered. Charmy cheered, Amy and Mephy grinned, and both Knuckles and Espio let out relieved sighs, "BUT!" it went quiet again as Vector marched over to Espio and pointed a finger in his face, "If you try ANYTHING fishy-!"

"Don't worry, I won't," Espio said in a soothing voice, "Knuckles is more likely to attack you than I am."

"That's a high bar you've set for yourself," Vector backed up, "but I believe ya, for now. But one WRONG STEP-"

"And you'll come at me, I know," Espio then glanced over to Amy and Knuckles, "Ready to go?"

"More than ready…so I can sleep," the echidna muttered, hopping back inside the vehicle and getting comfortable.

"Yeah," Amy answered, climbing back in. She then focused on the trio standing outside, "Hurry up so we can get moving!"

Mephiles nodded before jumping into the passenger side of the buggy. Vector scowled a little as he got in behind the wheel, being careful of his tail. Charmy, instead of following the pair, buzzed over and settled himself in beside Knuckles, "I'm riding with you guys! There's more room in here!"

"Just don't talk a lot kid," Knuckles mumbled and Amy chuckled. Espio backed out of the parking spot and headed for the main road. He waited for Vector to catch up before leading the way back to the agency.

The other Vector, who was indeed crashed on the couch of said building, was snoring soundly, curled up on the comfortable padded cushioning. The drive had taken everything out of him, the only one in the vehicle not being able to actually to go sleep on the ride. He was gone from the awake and conscious world, enjoying his much needed sleep.

Until there was a tap on his shoulder.

He swatted the hand away and attempted to go back to slumberland. He almost did, but the hand returned. He swatted again, annoyed, and was about to be dragged back under a second time, but a poorly stifled laugh caught his attention. He really wasn't in the mood for one of Charmy's tricks…

"Go back to bed Charmy…"

"I know you're tired, Vector, but you need to get up."

Wait, Espio? Okay, if he was doing the tapping then something important was up. Fighting the hold of sleep (even if he didn't want to), Vector slowly sat up and yawned widely, "What izzit Espio?" he asked, rubbing his face, eyes having trouble opening.

"At the moment, showing would be better than telling."

"Chaos _fine,_ " he reluctantly cracked open his eyelids and gave his attention to the chameleon standing beside him, "What?"

Espio bobbed his head to the left, and the croc glanced in that direction until every muscle in his body froze up.

There was another _him_ standing in the middle of the room.

Vector fainted on couch.

* * *

Shadow sipped his coffee, feeling its warmth slide down his throat. He set his glass cup down on the table with a barely audible clink, the dark brown drink inside sloshing around. Steam rose up into the hedgehog's face, rousing him with the help of the caffeine currently being spread throughout his system.

He was in his apartment at his kitchen table, staring at the window on the opposite wall, watching as the sun slowly inched its way up into the sky. He had come home when the bright star had just appeared over the horizon. He didn't bother going to sleep. He had spent all night searching, and he didn't even go far. He'd rather scan a small space thoroughly rather than miss things in a larger area.

He took another sip.

Shadow had gone around thirty miles out in every direction with Vanilla's house being in the center point. He searched every square mile, every square _foot_. He wanted to find something. Scorch marks, footprints, blood, _anything_. He found nothing.

So Espio and Omega were out there, with _Cream_. They could be doing whatever the hell they wanted with her. Torture was the first thing that came to mind, him picturing the condition of Rogue before he rescued him. The bunny would be scarred for life.

If she wasn't already dead.

The cup in his hand shattered.

Hard rubies watched dispassionately as the coffee puddled on the table, covering the glass shards and dripping to the tiled floor. Shadow took in a deep breath before swiftly standing up, the chair he was sitting in screeching backwards. He marched over to his front door, leaving the mess to clean up another time. He yanked it open only to see a certain bat with her hand raised, about to knock.

Rouge lowered it and grinned, "Well hey Shadow," she looked him over, zeroing in on the unkempt quills, bags under the eyes, and the coffee stain on one of his white gloves. The agent locked gazes with him before raising a brow, "No sleep?"

"What do you think?" Shadow snapped, stepping outside and slamming his door shut. He then pushed past her, storming away from the apartment.

"Whoa there! Don't use that tone with me hon," she admonished, flapping her wings to catch up with him. Her ankle was better, but it wasn't at one hundred percent yet. By his side, Rouge cocked her head at him, "No one told you to stay out all night."

He whirled on her, "Then what in the _hell_ was I supposed to do?" the words were growled out, "While you were enjoying your _luxury_ , I was out there _doing_ something!"

"We _all_ were doing something Shadow!" she placed her hands on her hips and glared, "But I knew when to call it quits so I wouldn't be an unlikeable grouch in the morning! Like _someone_ I know," it took a moment, but Shadow cooled back down, rubbing his temples. Rouge's expression softened, "This is impacting all of us sugar, you know that. Sure, you have this history with your Espio, but he took _our_ Cream. It's not all on you. We're here to help."

The Ultimate Lifeform ran a hand through his quills, "…I know. It's just _I've_ seen what he's capable of, and-"

"Your Tails has seen it too," Rouge interjected, the grin back on her face, "And I'm sure that we all can imagine it," she placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed, "You're not alone," the bat removed it before he could pull away, "But enough with the heavy stuff right now, let's talk about something else, like your bandages for your head. Where are they?"

"Got rid of them," Shadow grunted out, crossing his arms and idly watching the morning pedestrians move about. He then saw the slightly worried teal irises focused on him. He frowned, "I'm _fine_ Rouge."

She hand up her hands innocently, "Hey, it doesn't hurt to worry, right?" the bat then started down the sidewalk, heading in a certain direction. Shadow stared after her in curiosity before following. Rouge peered back at him, "So I was wondering, what did you and Blue do last night after we left?"

He saw the mischievous glint in her eyes, and he didn't appreciate it, "Your wording is horrendous, Rouge," he ignored her giggles, "We searched around after meeting up, nothing more, nothing less."

"Huh, kinda surprised that he didn't ask you for a race."

"It was a serious situation, and even _he_ knew that it was. Still is," Shadow responded, hover shoes clanking softly as he walked.

"Yeah…but did you hear how off Blue sounded when he talked on the communicator? That's the most…defeated I've ever heard him."

"Given the circumstances, I'm not surprised."

"Did he sound like that when he talked to you off-radio?"

Shadow glanced over at her before shrugging, "He didn't really talk to me. We met up and searched, like I said."

Rouge stopped moving forward, just staring at him. Shadow took a couple steps ahead before glancing back at her, frowning at her gaping expression. After a second, she shook her head and began moving again, "He didn't _talk_ to you? Are you sure that was our Blue, and not yours?"

The striped hedgehog snorted, "I'd know if it was the other one. And can you stop calling them mine? Because they're not."

"Technically…" He glared at her, and she giggled, "Sorry Shadow, just trying to lighten the mood a bit."

Shadow just sighed, glancing down at his hand and pulling a tiny piece of glass out of the fabric, "So why did you come to visit me, Rouge?"

"I was coming to pick you up hon," at the hedgehog's confused look, she explained, "Well, Tails called my place asking if I wanted to come to his to help think of a plan. Of course I agreed, and he suggested to bring you too, so here I am."

"Might as well," Shadow said after a moment, "Anything's better than searching blindly."

"And losing sleep," Rouge added with a smirk.

The Ultimate Lifeform disregarded that statement, "But don't you have to go to work today?"

She waved him off, "Depends on what this plan is and if I feel like it," she then pointed at him, "You're lucky that GUN still thinks that you're in the hospital, sugar. They would've torn your door down to get you to work."

"Wouldn't have went anyway," Shadow huffed before activating his shoes, "Enough talking though, let's get over there."

Rouge rolled her eyes, "Sorry I was _boring_ you," the hedgehog had to resist the urge to copy her action. He promptly took off, the bat trailing after him in the air.

They made it to the hedgehog/fox home in no time. Shadow stood to the side while the albino agent approached and knocked on the front door. It wasn't long before it was opened, Tails greeting them with a smile, "Hey guys! Come on in!" he took a step back to let them enter. Rouge returned the greeting with a wave, and Shadow nodded at him.

Once inside, Shadow glanced around the living room. It was surprisingly empty. He frowned, "Where's-"

"Everybody's in the garage," the kit answered his forming question. Then his yellow ears lowered some, "Well, mostly everyone. Vanilla's in Sonic's room…"

 _Oh right,_ Shadow thought, _I left before she woke up yesterday._ He turned to a concerned Rouge, "How did she take it?"

"Not well," she breathed out, "Not anyone did really, especially the other Tails."

Shadow expected that. TT had seen what Espio could do, and it couldn't be hard to imagine him doing it again. The striped hedgehog refocused on Tails as they made their way to the kit's man-cave, "What are you doing in there?"

"Just watching if there were any disturbances anywhere else. You know, like um…"

"Ones caused by a killer chameleon?" Rouge helped out.

Tails nodded, "Yeah those," he opened the door to the garage. The trio then deadpanned when they saw Sonic on the computer playing pinball. Knuckles was face-palming, and TT was glancing between the echidna and hedgehog in muted amusement.

"Sonic!" Tails shouted, running back over to the monitor and shooing his brother away, "Is now really the time?"

The hedgehog rubbed his neck as he chuckled, letting the kit man the computer again, "Sorry lil bro, just got bored."

Tails glanced at him oddly, "Bored? I was gone for less than a minute!"

"That's more than enough time to beat my high-score in pinball!"

"I will seriously _give_ you money if you let me punch him," Knuckles told Tails, itching to start swinging.

Sonic cockily grinned, "As if you can catch me slowpoke."

The echidna gritted his teeth, TT being smart and shifting closer to the wall to get out of harm's way, "Why you little-"

"Hey guys!" Tails interrupted, "No violence! There's breakable stuff in here!"

"Tails, are we going to do something advantageous here? If not, I'm going to leave."

At Shadow's words, everyone looked at him. Sonic, Knuckles, and TT just realized that he and Rouge were there standing behind them. Sonic grinned and approached the pair, "Don't be so hasty Shads, you just got here!"

 _You don't sound so down anymore, Faker,_ the striped hedgehog leaned on the nearby wall, "So keep me from leaving. Rouge said you wanted to come up with a plan for Espio."

Sonic's grin shrunk, "Yeah, we do Shads. Can't have him out there causin' havoc, y'know?"

"We were actually waiting for you to arrive," Knuckles pipped up, cracking his namesakes, "You'd help the most with this, since you know him the most."

TT went over to stand beside Shadow, feeling more comfortable there, "I-I don't know a lot a-about h-him…"

The striped hedgehog's frown grew as he thought. To be completely honest, he didn't know that much about Espio. He just knew that the chameleon was thirsty for blood and that he now had a vendetta against…pretty much everyone who had opposed him. That wasn't going to help them find him. Was there anything else? Well…

"He worked with Eggman the whole time," Shadow eventually provided.

"But we already know that…" Rouge hummed.

Knuckles clenched his teeth, "And that isn't helpful information whatsoever!"

Tails tapped his chin, "It might be though…if he had worked with Eggman in the past, who's to say that he won't seek him out again?"

Shadow tensed up, "We can't let that happen. I _refuse_ to have him build up another robot army."

Sonic clapped his hands, mood re-lifted, "Then all we have to do is find Egghead!"

"Which, again, is harder than you make it sound," Knuckles folded his arms across his chest, "We have _no_ idea where the man is."

The speedster put a hand on his hip, "I mean, it shouldn't be too hard to find him right? We've done it hundreds of times!"

"Yeah, but Espio might be with him hon," Rouge sighed, shifting her weight so that her ankle wasn't baring all of it, "And I think we can all agree that he's smarter than the average bear."

"He would be able to counteract the doctor's hubris," Shadow continued, their situation looking bleaker the more they talked about it, "Or at least try to.

"Guys! Stop being Negative Nancys!" Sonic grumped, his emerald irises hardening a bit, "It doesn't matter if Espio's with 'im or not, because McNosehair isn't gonna totally trust him yet. I mean, he _is_ Espio, and Eggy doesn't know about the dimension hopping thing or whatever," the azure hero tapped his foot, "And plus, if Egghead's already hiding, I doubt Espio's gonna make him move anywhere!"

Shadow narrowed his eyes, "No, he won't, but Espio will make sure that the doctor keeps their place hidden. Eggman, more often than not, gives away his location. This time, I'm sure that it's going to be harder to find them."

"Aw c'mon Debby Downer!" Sonic smirked before going over and throwing an arm around Shadow's shoulders, "With all of us on the case, we'll find him in no time! We'll get Cream back, take him down, and everything!"

Shadow growled before stepping out of his hold. _Sonic's underestimating him. If he does that, he's going to die…like I was supposed to,_ "You believe that it's going to be that simple Faker?"

"Definitely!"

"Really? Because I don't think so," the frown turned into a scowl, "You may have forgotten, but he technically _killed me_. And if you aren't careful, you will _die._ We're not dealing with Eggman anymore; we're dealing with a homicidal maniac with a good head on his shoulders. One wrong move and a life will be lost, an _innocent_ one." It was clear that he was talking about Cream.

No one said anything for a long moment, soaking in Shadow's true words.

"I know that, Shads," Sonic responded, smirk somewhat twitchy now, "I'm not stupid, despite what ya think," he winked, "No one's dyin' around here if I can help it, and I'm sure your 'death' is just him gettin' in a lucky shot or something," before Shadow could explain that it wasn't, Sonic turned to everyone else, "So back to Eggy, I think the first thing we should do is go on a clue hunt!"

"A clue hunt?" Tails asked, a bit subdued because of the reminder of Cream's situation.

Sonic nodded, "Yep! We go to his old bases and see if he left any signs to where he would be buildin' next!"

"That's not a bad idea…" Knuckles commented, "There's _gotta_ be something somewhere."

"While you all do that, I can go to GUN and 'work', as in going in and seeing if there's anything on file that could point to where the doctor is," Rouge said, even though she was looking forward to skipping her job today. Well, she wouldn't get chastised later for not coming in, so that's a plus.

"And I can still keep watch here for any major dangers or anything," Tails gestured to his active computer, "Plus, I'll keep an eye on Vanilla in case she needs anything."

Sonic smiled, "Awesome! So that leaves me, Knucklehead, TT, and Shads to go huntin'."

Knuckles sighed harshly out of his nose at the nickname, but let it go this time, "Actually, I'm not. Espio plus Eggman plus the Master Emerald being unguarded equals disaster. I'm sure you three can handle this yourselves, because I'm not risking it."

Shadow shrugged, not really caring, and TT gave him a meek nod, somewhat nervous about this mission he was about to go on.

Sonic gave him a thumbs up, "Good job on the math there Knux! Didn't take you long to figure that out at all! That's improvement!"

"Come over here hedgehog so I can _throttle-"_

"Alright Red, let's go before you break something in here," Rouge flew over and grabbed the fuming echidna's arm, pulling him out of the garage, "Then Tails would be upset."

Knuckles started to sputter, "B-But he started it!" he glared over at Sonic who was waving with a grin on his face.

"Uh huh, and I know your feelings must be hurt."

"Don't patronize me, bat!"

Then they were gone.

"So!" Sonic rubbed his hands together, "We should get this show on the road!" he turned toward the Tornado at the other end of the garage before smirking over to the quieter fox, "Hey TT, you know how to fly a plane, right?"

TT knew what he was implying, and his nervousness increased ten-fold, "Y-Yes but…"

"Do you think that's a good idea Sonic?" Tails asked, worried about the condition of his baby, "I mean, my plane could be different from the one he had."

"It looks the same as the one he owned," Shadow commented, going off his memory of the Hurricane. Tails didn't look reassured.

"Well there's one way to solve this!" Sonic jogged over to the plane and patted the cockpit, "Hop on in, TT! See if you can fly this bad boy!" he turned to his little brother, "If it's okay you bud."

The kit chewed the inside of his cheek, but nodded anyway, "He _is_ experienced enough," he then smiled over at his double, "I don't mind."

But TT _did_ though. Like what if he messed up, if he pushed the wrong button, pulled the wrong lever-! There was then a nudge from behind and he glanced back to see Shadow looking at him. The hedgehog gestured to the aircraft, "You've done it plenty of times before. I don't get why you're hesitating now."

TT just stared at him before swallowing. However, it seemed like support from a familiar face was all that was needed because he hovered over to the cockpit and timidly checked everything out. It was weird; everything _was_ the same. It was like he was about to take off in his own craft.

"I-I can f-fly it…" he said aloud.

Sonic flashed his pearly whites, "Great! You'll make a great pilot, I know it!" he then switched his attention to Shadow, "Okay so what's gonna be our first stop?"

"You don't have to worry about White Acropolis, since we've already been there," Tails cut in.

The blue hero nodded, "Right, and we didn't find anythin' there but random traps and Eggman's hungry mutt."

"Wait a minute," Shadow spoke up, gears turning in his mind, "That doesn't make any sense. White Acropolis is abandoned. Why would those things be active there?"

Sonic scratched his nose, "Eggy just left some stuff on for some reason."

"For _some_ reason?" Shadow glared, "He's hiding something there, obviously! That's our first stop. We're going to find what you didn't the first time."

"Hey look Shads," the hero placed a hand on his hip, "We went, we searched, and nothing was there! Eggman just wanted to make dog meat outta me, it seems."

"But _why_ would he take the time to fix up Cerberus and reactivate it to guard _nothing?_ " Shadow went over and jumped on the right wing of the plane, "Sometimes I wonder if you have any common sense at all, Faker."

Sonic glared weakly at him, "Alright, the Ultimate _Whiner,_ we'll go," the speedster hopped on the other wing and threw the other his signature grin, "Just so I can rub it in your face that I was right!"

Shadow scoffed.

"Just be safe guys, okay?" Tails called up from below, going over and letting the garage door up, "TT, you _do_ remember where to go right?"

Said fox froze until Sonic laughed behind him, "I'll show 'im the way! No worries!"

"Alright…"

Thankful that he'd have some type of guidance, TT went through the processes of starting the plane up, something that was more like muscle memory by this point. The roar of the engine filled the air. It wasn't long before the Tornado started to roll across the ground, taking off to the skies shortly after.

A while later, Shadow was ready to rip his ears off.

"Oh what's that Shads? Right, _another_ empty room!" Sonic taunted from behind him after the Ultimate Lifeform had checked probably the tenth door they had come across. The hero's laugh grated on his nearly fried nerves, "I _really_ should've betted on this!"

Shadow closed the door with a slam and glared daggers at the bluer hedgie, "I swear Faker, if you don't _shut up!_ "

Sonic strolled down the hallway they were in, "Sorry, can't hear you over the sound of me being right!"

The striped hedgehog swore he had steam pouring out of his ears. TT was slightly behind him, observing the scene. He watched as Sonic turned the corner, going out of sight, before turning to Shadow, "Y-You don't fight w-with him as much as you d-do with the one from our world, physically a-at least. Y-You two yell a lot though…"

Shadow huffed, calming down a tiny notch, "That's because this one will talk you to death," he began to walk forward, TT keeping up with him, "But that's pretty much it. Annoying as hell, but he doesn't go around attacking people because he feels like it," _Which is something I never thought I'd appreciate._

"D-Do you like this Sonic better?"

"Tolerate is a better word," TT didn't say anything back, hovering beside the other as they made their way down the hall, following after Sonic. They turned the corner and didn't see him, but there wasn't any other way to go, so he had to be up ahead around another one.

When they turned left, the pair saw Sonic with his back against the wall next to the doorway of the lab's main office. The hero spotted the duo and put a finger up to his mouth, gesturing for them to get closure with his other hand. Shadow was suddenly on the alert, footsteps soft as he crept closer. TT was so close to the striped hedgehog that they were almost touching; he was extremely anxious now.

Beside the speedster, Shadow could hear the grunts and shufflings inside. He whispered to Sonic, "Who's in there?"

"Dunno," he replied just as silently, ears twitching, "Hasn't talked."

"Rush them," Shadow said, and Sonic nodded, "In three…two…"

"Oh _come on_! Give me more information! I've searched all night-" there was a loud smash, "-you fucking piece of shit!"

The trio outside went stock-still, Shadow and TT slowly focusing on a gaping Sonic. He was the most shocked out of the three.

Because the person in the room had his voice.

* * *

 **Next chapter…the meeting of heroes!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer- I don't own them.**

 **Chapter 13- Black and Blue times two**

Sonic wasn't the most surprised out of the trio for long.

It only took a couple of seconds for reality to crash into TT like a runaway train. Sonic was one room away. The Sonic that he knew was _one room away._ The kit's trembling namesakes automatically wrapped themselves around his body as it slowly curled in on itself. A quiet whine slipped past his lips when he grabbed Shadow's arm without thinking, keeping his mind off of what could happen if the striped hedgehog wasn't with him. Keeping his mind off of what could happen even if he was…

Shadow snapped his gaze down toward the shaking fox, a frown growing on his muzzle. He felt the fingers gripping his arm tense up, and he realized that this situation would just give him a major headache. Exhaling through his nose (and ignoring the loud curses coming from the room beside them), the Ultimate Lifeform got TT's attention and pointed over to the corner they walked past earlier. He then whispered, "Wait behind there."

TT didn't need to be told twice. He twirled his furry twin appendages and quickly hovered back there, hiding with one sapphire iris peeking back at the hedgehog duo. Shadow nodded at him before turning to Sonic, who was gazing at the distant fox with a concerned expression on his face. The speedster focused on Shadow when he realized that the other was looking at him; he rose a curious brow.

An impromptu plan swiftly formed in the Ultimate Lifeform's head. He mouthed, "You stay out here until I get you. I'll go explain the…situation to him," _And hopefully decrease the size of the bomb that is inevitably going to go off. If I rationally tell him what has happened, then maybe…_ Shadow inwardly sighed, _What am I thinking? It doesn't matter how rational I am, he acts before he thinks. A trait that he shares with the Faker in front of me. It's worth a shot though, I suppose._

Sonic stared at him for a moment, ear twitching when another rather foul word escaped his double's mouth, before smirking a bit and giving him a 'After you' gesture with his hands. Shadow glared, "I _mean_ it," the speedster rolled his eyes before nodding. Shadow could tell that his rival was more than a little bit curious about his twin. Well, he'd find out soon enough.

Taking a deep breath and bracing himself, the striped hedgehog peeled off the wall and stepped past Sonic. Now in the doorway of the main office, Shadow immediately zeroed in on the figure standing in front of the many deactivated computer monitors. It was indeed the other Sonic. He was muttering under his breath as he studied the keyboards and buttons in front of him, completely oblivious to the metaphorical (or physical, it depends) slap to the face that was to come.

Before Shadow said anything however, he took in the blue hedgehog's appearance from the back. The azure hedgie's quills aren't the best, so whatever the speedster had been searching for had been a strenuous activity for him. It was entirely possible, if the bandages circling the blue Mobian's body were anything to go by. Sonic had been shot by Omega – Shadow had learned – so he had gotten help somewhere and the healing wound could have limited him.

The Ultimate Lifeform was dragged out of his musings when the mammal in front of him punched a group of buttons in anger, "Damn it, damn it, damn it!" _Well,_ Shadow thought, _if I had any doubts before, they are all but gone now._ Sonic ran both sets of fingers through his quills, "You stupid piece of effing junk…"

Shadow figured that it was time to set the ball (or bomb) rolling. He crossed his arms and strolled into the room, scoffing, "You do realize that yelling isn't going to make things change."

Startled, Sonic clenched his fists, ready to attack whoever foolishly decided to sneak up on him. But then the voice registered, and he turned his head to see the owner of the voice ambling up next to him. The fists were still tensed. Hard emerald eyes narrowed, "Funny, asshole," _So Stripes is alive. I was right to not believe that lying shitstain. Just wait until I see him again…_ Sonic watched Shadow who was eyeing the technology before him. The hero then copied the striped one's stance, facing him, "What in the hell are you doing here, Stripes?"

Ruby irises bored into his, "I could ask you the same thing."

Blue quills began to bristle, "You're already testing me, jackass? That's a mistake. I'm goin' to ask again, what in the hell are you _doing_ here?" _If he is after the fat-ass too, that isn't going to fly. No one is finding Eggman but me._

Shadow looked dispassionately at him, not fazed in the slightest at the hostile behavior. He was more than used to it, "It seems that this conversation isn't going to go anywhere," Sonic then glared at him so heatedly that Shadow was mildly surprised that he didn't burst into flames. But again, it didn't affect him. The room was quiet for a couple seconds, the atmosphere growing tense around the two; something it was used to doing. Shadow then figured that this was going nowhere and decided to just rip the Band-Aid off, "I'm here to share some information, not to delve in the time-wasting activity you seem to be partaking in."

That threw Sonic off, but only for a second. He bared his teeth, ready to the chew the other out about the fact that what he was looking for was _anything_ but time-wasting, but then he paused, realizing that doing so would let the cat out of the bag. And he needed that fucker sealed up tight.

So instead, the blue rodent snorted, "'Share some information' yeah right. Like you'd search for my ass just to tell me something. Unless it's about that chameleon being locked up for the next century, I don't give a shit."

Shadow's eye subtly twitched, _About that…_ he then filed that topic of conversation for later, realizing that it would be best to tell him after the smoke had cleared from this explosion, "I'm sure what I have to say is worth hearing, Faker," Sonic scowled at him, but didn't say anything else, most likely thinking of something to retort if the striped one's info wasn't 'worth giving a shit'. Shadow organized the words on his tongue before pushing out, "You're not where you think you are."

The hero gnashed his teeth, "I _swear_ Stripes if this is some Chaos-damned riddle-"

"It's not," the Ultimate Lifeform cut him off, disregarding the daggers sent his way, "You're in a different place. This isn't your home anymore, it's _mine_ ," Sonic went to interrupt, but Shadow held up a hand and sent him his own glare, "I told you about it at the campfire," at the spark of confusion in the other's eyes, he explained, "Faker, I don't know if you know this or not, but after you got shot, Rogue carried you back to Station Square."

 _Station Square? Then how the hell did those birds get to me?_ Sonic thought, but didn't speak aloud, actually wanting to listen to what Stripes had to say – not that he'd admit that out loud.

Shadow went on, "Some…unfortunate series of events occurred and ultimately, you and the group present were Chaos Controlled away from the city," Sonic narrowed his eyes, "The point of this is to tell you that you were sent to another dimension, _mine,_ " the Ultimate Lifeform took in a breath, "Yours doesn't exist anymore."

The next thing Shadow knew was that he was pressed hard against a wall with something very sharp being held against his neck.

The fuse was lit.

"I am _tired_ of being lied to," Sonic spat, voice filled to the brim with venom. Shadow growled at him, raising his arms and gripping the one that held the blade. He attempted to push it away, but Sonic wasn't having it. The hero pushed harder, and the striped hedgie felt a drip of blood run down his neck. The speedster snarled, "Nothing has come out of your mouth but _bullshit_. Now if you don't tell me why you're _really_ here, Imma make it so that you'll regret coming to find me in the first place!"

"If you'd use your _brain_ for once in your life Faker," Shadow strained out, trying to get over the slight pain under his chin and the throbbing in the back of his head, "you'd realize that I wouldn't waste _my_ time in telling you lies!"

Sonic jeeringly laughed, it was dark and void of mirth, "You expect me to believe that Stripes? Another dimension?" he got closer, grin turning into a sneer, "Maybe I thought you were smarter than you actually are, huh bastard?"

Shadow opened his mouth to give a scathing response when another voice filled air, "Whoa whoa! What's goin' on in here?!"

Sonic went wide-eyed before he snapped his head over in that direction, Shadow doing the same. Four pairs of eyes focused on the azure hedgehog standing in the doorway, whose surprised green orbs were glancing back and forth between the feuding duo.

"Damn it Faker!" Shadow hissed at the one not currently threatening to slit his throat, "Didn't I tell you to wait!"

"Yeah but I think that I came in at the right time, don't ya agree Shads?" Sonic's gaze then drifted over to lock with his flabbergasted double's, "Hey other me! I know this is kinda…comin' outta left field, but can't we talk about it? Y'know, without you killin' Shadow there?" His twin didn't move, still staring at him. Sonic gave semi-forced chuckle, "Take a picture, it'll last-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence, for his doppelganger had violently shoved Sonic out of the room, slamming the office's door and locking it.

Shadow, now freed from the hold, rubbed his neck as he looked over at Sonic who was clenching his fists, the glass cutting into one of his hands. Two drops of blood dripped to the tiled floor.

There was a knock on the door, "Uh I don't know if you realize this pal, but that wasn't talkin' it out."

He was ignored by both of the hedgehogs on the inside.

Sonic slowly turned to the Mobian behind him, fury bubbling inside, " _Who_. The. Fuck. Was. That?"

Shadow saw the rage and readied himself, "Your dimensional twin. I wasn't lying. There's your proo-" sudden pain blossomed in his right cheek, Sonic's punch fueled with building rage.

Boom.

The striped hedgehog hissed as he flew back into the blank monitors. Shadow slid off the keyboards holding his bruising skin. Then his chest fur was fisted and he was forcefully pushed against the boards again, gritting his teeth when the back of his head throbbed once more.

Sonic tightened his grip, holding up a fist with his unoccupied hand, shard of glass laying on the ground. He was shaking with fury, "What did you effing _do_?" the hero brought down his fist, striking Shadow's temple and making his world tilt for a split second, "Actually, it doesn't matter if you tell me or not, because I'm about to beat you _within an inch of your worthless life asshole!_ "

He aimed to hit again, but Shadow spit blood in his eye, making him gasp and let go. The Ultimate Lifeform wiped his mouth before punching the other in the stomach twice and then roundhouse kicking him in his side. Sonic staggered a bit, growling while holding the abused area. "I didn't do _anything,_ " Shadow growled out, _Technically_ , he mentally added, scowling at the pain in his face.

"That's bullshit!" Sonic rushed him and attempted to punch Shadow in the nose, but he ducked, going for a low kick. The speedster hopped over that before twisting around and digging his heel into Shadow's left knee, making him kneel to the ground when the spark of agony pulsed through his system. Seeing his opening, Sonic tackled him to the ground and began wailing on his face, "You're the _only one who can do it!"_

"No I'm not, you damned idiot!" Shadow managed to get out between hits. He then grabbed both of his attacker's hands, muscles straining to keep them from moving. He spat out more blood mixed with saliva before continuing, "Penumbra can too!"

Sonic paused for a split-second and that was enough time for Shadow. He let go of one hand and punched the blue hedgehog right in the chest, unknowingly hitting right where the hero was shot. Sonic shouted in agony as he was pushed off the Ultimate Lifeform. Shadow quickly straddled him and returned some of the punches to the face he received, "If you weren't so one-track minded, you would've remembered that!" Shadow then saw a growing blood stain on the white wrappings around his more temperamental rival's chest. He furrowed his brow before making the connection that he must've ripped some stitches or something similar.

The striped hedgehog then cried out when Sonic slashed his arm with the glass shard that he somehow found again. Shadow jumped off the hero to avoid another cut, grasping his wound and feeling the moisture soak through his glove. The azure speedster sat up and put a hand on where he was bleeding under his bandages, sucking in a harsh breath at the pain there. The pair both glared at each other on separate sides of the room, panting.

Then the door flew off its hinges.

It was launched between the fighting duo, skidding along the ground and finally stopping under where the monitors were. Standing in the doorway was Sonic, who took in both of the hedgehog's conditions. A small frown marred his face when he saw the bleeding and bruised Shadow. He then saw the little less roughed up version of himself and went over to stand in between them, still staring at his double, "Y'know, I figured that you two would need more than just a little talk, but this is just overkill!" The blue hero on the floor gave him a once-over before carefully standing up, blade ready in his hand. Sonic saw that instantly and gestured to it, "Can you put that down bud? Because I'm sure the saying 'don't run with scissors' applies here."

"Bud?" he repeated, still mad as hell. The red spattered speedster took a menacing step toward Sonic, growling low in his throat, "I think you have the wrong guy. I'm anything but. Now get your ass outta the way before I make you!" Sonic just put a hand on his hip and grinned. The twin roared before charging at him, arm ready to slice and dice, "You should've left this between me and Stripes, but no!"

The angry hedgehog went to slash when he was close enough, but Sonic nimbly dodged to the side, grabbed the other's arm, and used his momentum against him. The cleaner blue hedgie spun around a couple times before letting go, making his twin crash into the wall. Sonic sped over and snatched the glass out of Sonic's hand, hurling it away and smirking when it shattered to pieces, "It's time to play fair, other me."

The scowl deepened on a bloody muzzle as its owner stood back up, ready to pounce. Sonic got into a fighting stance, waiting for the right time to move, grinning all the while, "So you're the Sonic I've been hearin' so much about, with the cursing and fighting and stuff. It's not really good for the kiddies, but hey, if that's what you're into."

"And you're the jackass that _I've_ been told about," Sonic retorted, smirking maliciously, "You're the goody-two shoes who thinks he's too _good_ to take full control of people."

Sonic blinked, cocking his head, "Full control?"

The blue hero's smirk widened, his busted lip becoming more prominent, "Fear and pain does wonders."

The speedster rose a brow, "Wow, that's quite a philosophy ya got there," he leaned to the left to dodge a punch and threw his own fist only to hit a wall. He glanced to his right to see his twin balancing on the balls of his feet, bloodied and clenched hands raised. Sonic pursed his lips, "And I think I know why you're kinda messed up."

His doppelganger barked out a raspy laugh, "Really? Since you know me so damn much, why don't you share?"

"Look pal," Sonic put up his hands in a calming gesture, "I know that you've gone through some heavy stuff in your life, but you can't let it get to ya. Death can affect people, I know, but-" his teeth then smashed together when an uppercut bashed him in the chin, causing his jaw to lock up. He was airborne until a spin dash hit him right in his stomach, some blood escaping his mouth. Sonic slammed into the wall before falling to the floor, his abdomen screaming in agony.

He struggled to get up – it felt like someone had stabbed him the hit was so hard – only to get punched right in the face, sending him reeling backwards. Before he could hit the ground, a hand harshly grabbed the loose skin on his chest, and he was suddenly face-to-face with his mirror image. A little too close for comfort.

Sonic shook his good twin, "Who. Told. You," when the other didn't answer, he did it again more violently, seeing his doppelganger wince in pain, "I said _who told you!"_ _It-It couldn't be Stripes. He wouldn't tell. I don't have a reason why, but I know that he just wouldn't._

Sonic cracked a smile, trying to regain his footing, "Hey now, I'm not a snitch."

Shadow, who had been watching the fight (in all honesty, he was curious to see how it would end. Sonic versus Sonic was not something you'd see every day) and slowing down the blood coming out of the cut he'd got, decided that it was time to intervene. Sonic mentioning the other one's history wasn't the best thing to do, now that Faker 2.0 was raging like a bull.

Before he could move however, there was a shock of yellow fur to his left. Turning that way, Shadow saw TT cautiously peeking his head in and seeing the carnage inside. _He can watch at his own risk._ Refocusing, the Ultimate Lifeform zoomed behind the red spattered hedgehog and kicked the back of his knees, sending him to the ground. Shadow then took the blue one's arms and wrenched them behind the hero's back, rendering them unusable. His captive struggled to get out of his grip, but it was futile.

Sonic, who had dropped to the floor as well, slowly picked himself back up, flinching at the throbbing of his nose. He resisted the urge to touch it, "Now that was…something…" he said, giving his attention to Shadow, "Dang Shads, how'd you deal with him for as long as you did?"

"I've had experience," he grunted out, looking pointedly at the standing Sonic.

"Aw c'mon," Sonic coughed and nearly cried out as he did so, "I couldn't have been _this_ bad!"

The blue hero on the floor snarled, "I _swear_ I will find out who told you, and when I do, I will fuck you _and_ whoever up so bad that-" movement out of the corner of his eye distracted him. He turned that way only to see frightened sapphires move away from the door frame. That freak told. He was _livid._ Sonic twisted his body and head around, sinking his teeth into sensitive flesh.

Shadow shouted out in pain when he bit his arm, yanking his appendage away from those fangs. By doing so, Sonic had gotten free enough to knock the other fully away, stand up, and run out of the room. The other speedster quickly went after him, knowing that his twin saw TT outside.

Said kit was running (or rather flying) for his life. Tears started to form in his eyes as soon as he realized that he had been seen. The fox went as fast as he could, but there was no way he could outrun a Sonic. TT yelled out when one of his namesakes were grabbed to stop him in his tracks. Then a hand wrapped around his throat, slamming him against the nearest wall, causing his cheeks to moisten.

"I know it was you, _freak,_ " Sonic growled, "And now you're gonna pay for opening your big-ass mouth!"

However, before he could do anything, a body collided with his, making him let go of the fox. He felt himself behind straddled, and his face was being assaulted again. This time, instead of black and red, he saw blue. He felt his head quills being grabbed, and his head was pulled up. What he saw through his swollen eyes made him pause. It was like he was looking in a mirror. Sure, before the basic shape and color of the face were the same, but not the expression. It had been totally different. But now…he felt the heat in the glare, saw the bared teeth, and heard the angry puffs of air.

"Now, you can attack me or even Shads all you want. He can take the heat," he heard. The grip on his quills tightened, "But when you go for my _friends_ …that's no good," the mirror shattered when the scowl turned into a bright (and obviously fake) grin, "So don't do that again, 'kay?"

Sonic didn't wait for the other to respond. He let go of the other's head before getting off his doppelganger, glancing behind himself to find Shadow and TT watching. Sonic let out a sigh and ran a hand through his quills, seeing how TT was still shaking. What he just did probably didn't help matters much. The hero smiled the best he could and approached the kit, and to his surprise, the fox didn't move. Sonic reached out and ruffled yellow fringe, disregarding the flinch he felt, "I'm not gonna let him hurt ya," he gave a thumbs up, "So don't worry!"

TT stared up at him for a long moment before nodding.

Shadow observed their interaction before diverting his attention back on the Sonic on the floor. He sighed, "We need to hurry and get to the hospital."

"Huh?" Sonic intelligently responded. He then followed Shadow's gaze and immediately understood. His twin was passed out, a lot of blood covering his chest, the bandages there more red than white, "Right…" he went over and carefully lifted his mirror image into his arms, wincing at the pain in his stomach. He's definitely going to bruise there, "That's a good idea."

The speedster ran in the direction of the exit, and Shadow skated beside him, TT hovering behind. No one spoke for a while until:

"Hey Shads."

"What?"

"Guess you were right about the whole 'there's something here' thing."

"…Told you so, hedgehog."

* * *

Vector woke up with a start, sitting straight up on the couch and searching around crazily. He didn't see anyone else in the living room he crashed in. He put a hand right against his rapidly beating heart, taking deep breaths to calm himself back down. It was just a dream. He _definitely_ didn't see another crocodile that looked exactly like him standing in the middle of the room. No way.

The green reptile yawned before stretching and getting off the couch. He then froze when he heard sounds coming from the kitchen. Vector relaxed at that. It was normal for Espio to be the first one up; he was just looking for something to eat for breakfast. The croc rubbed his stomach, thinking that it was best if he grabbed some grub as well.

Passing by a window with early sunlight filtering through it, Vector crossed the living room and went over to the door frame that separated the room from the kitchen. The croc entered it and paused in his steps. Espio was eating cereal at the table positioned in the center of the space. That's where the normality ended. In the other seats were Knuckles, Amy (the croc's slow brain just now remembered what happened yesterday), and was that Shadow…? No it wasn't. Who in the heck was that?

The purple chameleon was the first to acknowledge him, "Good morning, Vector."

"Mornin'," he responded, still staring at the striped hedgehog eating cereal. Said rodent felt his gaze and turned toward him. There was a hesitant smile on his face; he gave the reptile a small wave. Vector turned to the other scaled Mobian in the room and pointed, "Espio. Who the heck is this?"

Amy, slurping down some milk, answered for the chameleon, "Oh yeah, you passed out before we could introduce you! This is Mephiles."

"Mephiles…?" Vector gasped, a memory being dragged to the front of his brain, "Isn't that-!"

"Yes," Espio answered.

"Who Knuckles told us-"

"Yes."

"WHY IS HE HERE?"

The red echidna, who was just relaxing in his seat having finished his breakfast, gave him a lazy glare, "Calm down, it's not that serious. He's from our world. No need to panic."

Vector sat down heavily beside Espio, "You're still going on about this 'other world' crap? Don't you think the act has gone on LONG enough?"

Amy sighed and rolled her eyes, "It's not an act Vector! You saw the proof yesterday! You saw _our_ Vector, yeah? That's why you fainted!"

The croc froze up, heart skipping a beat, "That wasn't…That wasn't a dream?"

"Nope," Knuckles yawned.

"Oh really?" Vector asked, skepticism laced throughout his voice, "Then where is he now?"

"In your bed," Espio simply said as if he was talking about the weather, scooping another spoonful of sugary treats in his mouth.

"WHAT?!"

Knuckles winced and rubbed his temples, "Chaos you yell a lot…"

"Oh, and I hope you don't mind that let our Charmy sleep in the same bed as yours," Amy added with a smile, "I mean, I don't think they do."

Vector glanced at Espio, "Does Charmy know?"

The chameleon shook his head, "He hasn't woken up-"

"AHHHHHH!"

"-nevermind."

It wasn't long before a frantic Charmy was buzzing around the kitchen, pointing the way he came, "Oh my gosh! There's another _me_ in my room! Am I going crazy? I am aren't I? I'm going crazy!"

The visitors of the agency watched in various degrees of amusement as the bee went into panic mode above their heads, babbling all sorts of things. That all ended when Espio grabbed his arm and grounded the child, "It's alright Charmy. You're not going crazy."

The bee blinked, "I'm not?"

"No, you just saw your twin."

"I have a _brother?!_ "

The room face-palmed, but Espio managed to resist the urge. He just gave the bee a pointed look, "No you don't have a brother. Remember how Knuckles and Amy came from a different dimension?" Charmy nodded, "Well, the Charmy you saw back there is their friend."

"Really?" the child turned to the pink hedgehog and red echidna; they both nodded. His eyes began to sparkle in excitement, "Wow! Cool!" the insect then hovered over to Mephiles, examining him, "You're a friend of theirs too?" the striped hedgie nodded, chewing cereal, "Awesome!"

Vector frowned, "I still don't believe it!" disbelieving heads turned toward him, "Until I see another me or another him, there's no WAY I'm-"

"We're having cereal for breakfast?" there was a sleepy yawn, "Cool…"

The croc – completely in shock – followed as a _second_ Charmy drowsily hovered over to Mephiles and settled himself on the amused hedgehog's head. Espio cracked a small smile before standing up and fixing the both of the bees a bowl. Amber eyes flickered over to the biggest one in the room, "Do you believe now, Vector?"

Said crocodile ran a hand down his face, leaning back in his chair, "What is my LIFE right now?"

"Your life is amazing!" Charmy chirped, flying over to his sleepier doppelganger, "Hey! Do you want to play outside after we eat?"

"Play outside?" the other him repeated, more awake now. He beamed, "Yeah sure! That'll be fun!"

"If they're going outside, I'm staying in," Knuckles mumbled, "One hyper bee is enough to deal with."

Amy giggled, elbowing him, "Stop being such a grump."

Espio handed the hedgehog-mounted bee a bowl, and then gave the hovering one his breakfast also. Both bees smiled, "Thanks!" before digging in into their sweet food.

"This is insanity," Vector muttered to himself before crossing his arms, critically eyeing everyone in the room until they fell on the double bees, "Okay so, this is happening."

Espio nodded, "It is."

"So…what do we do about it?"

The chameleon shrugged, "We don't have to do anything."

Vector threw his hands in the air, "What do you mean? Them just _being_ here has to mess something up, somewhere!"

"Well, nothing has happened yet Vector, and they've all been here for at least a day," Espio tried to reason, tracing the grain of the table with his finger, "At least wait for something to happen before you get paranoid."

"I agree with Espio!" Amy pipped up, pointing at Vector, "You've been nothing but a skeptical judge ever since I've known you. Lighten up a bit! Aren't you at least a _bit_ excited to meet your double?" the pinkette then glanced over at the entrance of the kitchen, "Who apparently is loving your bed _way_ too much…"

" _Excuse_ me for acting like this!" the croc huffed, "I don't know about you, but I surely don't see DOUBLES of people every day!"

"And you surely don't care about people trying to sleep either," a familiar voice rung out and the green reptile turned to see his double shuffle into the room, leaning on the nearby wall and rubbing his eyes, "Because you are LOUD."

"It's funny coming from you," Knuckles uttered and the newcomer was too tired to glare at him.

Vector looked his doppelganger over, seeing no differences in his and the other's appearance, not that he thought that he was going to find any. He soon realized that the twin was doing the same to him. After staring for a moment, Vector stood up and approached the other, stopping a respectable distance away. It looked like they were sizing each other up.

The kitchen was silent until the one leaning on the wall snorted out a laugh, "This is beyond stupid," He held out a hand and gave a good-natured grin, "The name's Vector the crocodile, nice to meet ya."

Vector blinked before laughing as well, giving a firm handshake, "My name's Vector the croc, nice to meet ya too!"

"Good!" Amy clapped, the atmosphere light-hearted again, "Now that we've all met each other and that you can stop being a grouch, can we go back to having a happy morning?"

Before anyone could answer, a shrill ringing filled the air. It took a moment, but eventually they all tracked the sound over to Espio. Said chameleon checked the cuff of his glove and pulled out the noisy phone.

He furrowed his brow before answering it, "Hello?" there was a pause where everyone in the room was looking curiously at him. The purple Mobian then got out of his chair and went over to one of the nearby cabinets, "This is them," he pulled out a pen and reached over to tear a paper towel off its holder. He positioned the writing utensil, "We're free at the moment yes...Name please?" the pen began to move, "Why do you need our services? …A missing child?" he stopped writing for a split second before continuing, "Alright, we're on our way."

Vector, who knew what was going on, groaned, "I didn't even eat breakfast yet!"

"What was that all about?" his twin asked, brow raised.

"We have a job," Espio answered, hanging the phone up, "An important one too. The client's child has disappeared and the police can't find any leads."

"Oh wow…" Amy breathed out, concerned, "Do you get these types of jobs all the time?"

"Actually, jobs that hold this much weight are quite rare," the chameleon glanced over to his Vector, "We have to get moving right away. She wants us to meet up at her home near Central City," he then focused on the youngest member of the agency, "Charmy, hurry and finish your breakfast so we can leave," the kid, knowing how serious the situation was, nodded and started to scarf down his cereal.

The Charmy sitting on Mephiles smiled at his double, "It's soooo cool that you're a detective!"

The other bee snickered, "It's really fun!" he then looked over at his elders, "Hey, can they come with us? It'll be waaayyyy more fun!"

Espio shook his head, "I think it's better if we three just go. That's the number the customer is expecting, after all," he glanced around at all of the visitors, "If you all want, you can stay-"

"Oh NO they can't!" Vector interrupted loudly, "Look, it's not that I don't trust you guys, it's just that I don't want my stuff messed with. I'm sure there's _something_ you can do _out_ of our home that should keep ya busy until we come back."

"WHAT? So you're kickin' us out?" the other croc frowned, "And you're basically sayin' that you don't trust yourself."

It took a second before it clicked, and Vector rolled his eyes, "Stop puttin' words in my mouth! Of course I trust myself, but you're not me! And no, I'm not kickin' you out, just ordering that you find somethin' else to entertain yourselves so nothin' goes missing 'round here!"

"So…you're throwing us out," Amy puffed before sighing, "Well, we were going to Station Square anyway to visit Shadow in the hospital."

"Oh yeah!" her Charmy shouted out, chewed bits of cereal flying out of his mouth and landing in Mephy's bowl. The striped hedgehog pushed the dish away in disgust, "You did tell us that Shadow's alive! We gotta go see him!"

"If he's there," Espio cut in, "My advice is to actually go to Sonic's and ask him if he's still there. Amy, if you go the same route we took to the city last night and veer right before reaching it, you'll eventually come across his home."

"Sonic?" Amy immediately frowned before shaking her head, remember that they were in a different place. Shadow's description of the hedgehog echoed in her mind, "Guess we can do that…"

"He better not be ANYWHERE as troublesome as ours is," Vector grumbled.

"He can't be," Knuckles placated, "It's near impossible."

Espio nodded, "Then it's settled. I think we'll be back before nightfall, but anything could happen. So it's actually a good thing that you're letting someone else know that you're here."

"Yeah...He could help us find the rest of our group," she tapped her chin, "Like Tails, and…"

"Silver!" Charmy provided.

"Rogue," Vector added.

"And Penumbra," Knuckles grunted out.

 _That seems to be it,_ Mephiles thought to himself.

 _Rogue and Penumbra? I'm not even gonna ask,_ the other Vector crossed his arms, "So that's what, four people? It isn't gonna be hard findin' them, especially with the blue blur's help."

"But wait!" Charmy looked over to Vector, "Sonic was supposed to find Nummy! So he's with him!"

"Oh yeah that's right," Vector mused, "Then we can cross Penumbra off the list."

"What happened with him?" Knuckles questioned.

Vector waved him off, "Long story short, Penumbra got trapped and me and Charmy looked for help. We ran into Mephiles and Sonic," he jabbed his thumb over at Mephy, "And got the blue menace to go help him. Dunno where they are now."

"So it's down to three," Amy bit her lower lip, "Hopefully we can find them fast," _Tails, where in the heck are you? Please be safe with Silver or Rogue or just…just be okay._

The Chaotix shared a look with each other before Espio spoke up, gesturing over to his Charmy and taking the child's empty bowl. He put it in the nearby sink, "I wish you all the best of luck in your search."

Amy smiled thankfully, "And good luck with your detective work too."

They parted ways not ten minutes later.

* * *

Tails sighed as he stared at the monitor before him, clicking his mouse as he switched from various news websites, watching for anything suspicious that might point to a homicidal chameleon. He even had a GUN tab pulled up, it being a page he had hacked into to make sure that he didn't miss anything.

Namesakes swishing slowly behind him, the kit reached over with his left hand and picked up a slice of a peach he had on a plate, surrounded with other various fruits. This was his breakfast. Tails had also made a plate for Vanilla, but she wasn't awake yet. Or maybe she was and just not…fully there. Because he wasn't sure, he told her quietly that he'd leave the fruit on the nightstand by the bed. He put down the dish before leaving the shutting the door behind himself.

Vanilla had moved from the couch into Sonic's room when everyone else had woken up. Sonic insisted that she did. The rabbit fell back asleep under the sheets like she hadn't been roused at all. Tails had wrapped Cheese in a thin blanket beside her, thinking that it was still too soon to separate the Chao and rabbit.

Speaking of rabbits…

Tails took in a deep breath as he thought about Cream, keeping the tears at bay. They were going to find her. He believed that they will. And she would be fine. She would…

The yellow fox jumped out of his skin when the doorbell rang. He chuckled at his own skittishness before hopping out of his chair and hovering out of the garage. As he made his way to the front door, he was wondering who could possibly be at it. It couldn't be Rouge. Shadow, Sonic, and TT were away, or supposed to be. Was it Knuckles? But why would he come back?

Standing at the front door now, Tails reached for the doorknob before freezing. What if it was neither of them? Could it…Could it be Espio? Did he somehow find out where he lived? Tails was suddenly nervous. But he couldn't have right? Right? The fox swallowed thickly. There was only one way to find out.

He swung the door open.

Then all he saw was pink.

Tails let out a surprised shout when he was forcefully hugged, his body being shaken back and forth. He knew it was Amy, but he couldn't figure out _why_. She would never do this! Had something happened to make her worry about his well-being? Or did something happen to her? Or-

Something clicked in Tails' brain.

Or maybe this wasn't Amy at all.

He was grabbed by the shoulders and was face-to-face with elated green irises, "Tails! I've finally found you!"

Nope. Not Amy at all.

* * *

 **Next chapter…tales from the underground!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer- If only…**

 **Chapter 14- Sweetness in the shadows**

"Omega, activate Master Emerald energy circulation."

"ACTIVATING."

Espio was leaning against a metal wall in a room he was in, finishing off his slightly burnt toast he had for breakfast (he was moderately surprised that the doctor had let him stay at the lab for the night. Metal must've kept an eye on him) after saying his command. He brushed his usable hand off on his side, getting the annoying crumbs off of it. The chameleon was focused on his robot standing up by Eggman, both of them situated by a raised monitor with a multitude of graphs shown on the screen. Omega had many sensors attached to him all over his metallic body. They were on his head, his torso, his singular working arm, and his legs.

The rotund human was observing the moving pictures on the monitor, intrigued, "Outstanding! The energy of the Master Emerald covers all of Omega's surface area!" he glanced over to the quiet ninja, "Yesterday," he took a sip of coffee from a mug that had 'Eggmanland' on it, "we've discussed that this makes the robot for durable and perhaps even faster, but you've refrained from telling me how you did it. That _and_ somehow reprogramming Omega!"

 _I did so on purpose, if you haven't caught onto that yet Eggman,_ Espio thought, adjusting his broken him in the sling, _I've had to think on it overnight. I can't tell him how I did it, because with his sudden personality change, he may make plans without my consent. That won't do. So instead, I'll wait to tell him, if I have to at all. Getting access to the doctor's supplies will be easier than I thought if I decide later that the man is superfluous._ The chameleon subtly glanced over to Metal Sonic who was scanning the graphs as well, _Metal is more…independent than I thought robots could ever be. And Eggman trusts him, well, more than he'll trust me in a long time. And Metal will do anything to get what he wants…_

Espio cleared his throat and gave Eggman his full attention, thanking Chaos that he was a great liar. Metal calling him out would be the last thing he needed, "I didn't do it. Someone else did," Metal was looking at him now. He ignored the bot, "As for reprogramming him," _I didn't, but since you're so adamant that I did,_ "A simple system restart did the trick."

"Hmm," Eggman stroked his mustache and returned to the screens, seemingly satisfied for now. Espio felt Metal's gaze on him, and he let out a soft sigh in relief when the mech turned away as well with no words. The doctor then barked out a laugh, "Now this is a grand discovery! My horizons have been broadened! Ho ho! All I have to figure out is exactly how to infuse the energy into my robots, and then those pests could do nothing to stop me!"

"You have to get the Master Emerald first, doctor," Metal reminded in his monotonous voice, "You know how difficult that mission can end up being."

Espio rose a brow at that, cutting into their conversation, "What's the difficulty that you're implying?" Because it honestly wasn't that hard. No one was around it since Knuckles wasn't exactly the perfect guardian. The chameleon was sure that a cactus could do the job better.

The red glowing optics slid over to him, "You should know," Metal clipped. Eggman, a bit miffed that he'd been ousted from his own discussion, went over and began to take the sensors off of Omega. He still listened to the conversation however, because the ninja was an enigma to him. The first in a while. No one went from frolicking with the pincushion to wanting to kill him and his friends in cold blood that fast. Sure, it's been a while since he had control of the Time Eater, but this was still interesting.

"Enlighten me," Espio retorted right back, not deterred by the attitude he had detected. The slightly irritated tone reminded him of what Eggman said yesterday. About Metal receiving some traits from Sonic. He would have to ask about that.

Metal stared him down, and when it seemed like the chameleon wasn't budging, he eventually responded, "That echidna is always protecting it, as you know," Espio cocked his head marginally, _Really?_ "And there is a chance that the blue irritation or some of his acquaintances could be there as well at any given time."

Now that was strange. Sure, there was the possibility that the echidna – or someone else – had managed to retrieve it from his lab, but the chance of Knuckles protecting it himself was very low. Nonexistent even. It was most likely Shadow if Espio had to guess. And what was with the 'always protecting it'? That was a blatant false statement. The chameleon knew that something was off about Eggman, but having a robot – who didn't have patience for jokes – say that was disconcerting at the least. This whole situation was a mystery, and Espio was going to solve it sooner or later.

"Good point," the ninja commented, pretending to absorb that information with no problems.

"It's an _excellent_ point that robot made for once!" Eggman butted back in, and Espio saw the twitch of Metal's fingers, "And that's why I'll think of a genius plan for invading that little island later, but for now…" he regarded his blue bot, "Metal, did you set up what I told you to las-"

"My apologies," Espio interrupted again, schooling his expression into an apologetic one. Eggman didn't look as annoyed as he could've been, "But before we go off the topic of the Master Emerald and robots, I'm curious on the construction of Metal Sonic, doctor," he looked over said mech before meeting the scientist's gaze, "You said before that Metal has some…unfavorable traits that he had gotten from Sonic. How is that possible?"

Eggman chuckled, smiling brightly at some memory, "Oh it was _years_ ago! One of my best plans! You see, I made a machine that would capture Sonic and transfer his DNA over to Metal here!" Espio's amber eye widened slightly as he glanced over at the robot again, realizing that this was no regular machine at all. That's why he was so independent. The doctor continued, "It was a success! That brat's DNA is stored in Metal's main microchip. Fortunately, Metal didn't inherent the rodent's full personality because I would've needed to destroy him if he did," he laughed like it was funniest joke in the world.

"As if I would let you," the robot snapped, but it went unheard by the doctor, the words being drowned out by the guffaws. But Espio heard, and snorted in amusement. At the noise, Metal looked at him for a moment before returning his focus on the human.

"That was a brilliant plan doctor, please tell me that you have the blueprints of the remarkable machine somewhere? Surely you like to look at them for the good memories."

At the chameleon's question, Eggman waved him off, "They're most likely in some archives somewhere, ho ho!" the doctor calmed down a bit, still chuckling, "Hm…they would be great for the memories of my successes!" he tapped his chin, "Perhaps I should print them out and start a scrapbook…?"

"You don't have enough successes to start a scrapbook," Metal said.

"Quiet you!" Eggman yelled, all humor gone, "See? Again with this negativity! You be careful, because I might replace you with him!" he pointed back over to Omega who had been watching silently.

Metal responded with a robotic representation of a scoff, "I would dismember him before you got the chance."

Espio sharply looked over at the bot, but didn't say anything. Omega on the other hand, "YOU DO NOT WANT TO BE ON THE RECEIVING END OF MY FLAMETHROWER," he rose his functional hand, and it transformed into a cannon with hot smoke flowing out of it. Metal's eyes flashed dangerously.

The chameleon stepped in between the two, "Alright, let's calm down. No one is taking the other apart or melting them down," he glanced over to his bot, "Stand down," Omega did so; Espio turned to Metal, "Don't let him get a rise out of you, and also don't rise him up. Did you think that the threat of dismemberment would have been taken lightly?"

Espio swore that the blue bot was glaring at him, but there was no real proof since there was no visual change in the mech's stare. But the ninja _felt_ it, "I may have made a mistake. However, do not be surprised if I react to a hostile approach accordingly."

 _He's challenging me,_ Espio lifted his chin, "If you don't instigate it, then you won't be threatened. Learn something from this," he then looked at an amused Eggman, effectively ending the conversation, and in turn, the argument, "I think it would be best if you'd just forget about that interaction doctor."

"Oh no, that got me thinking! What _would_ a fight between Metal and Omega result in?" A Cheshire grin spread across his face, "With the Master emerald energy in play, no one can guess the outcome!"

Espio fought to keep the frown off his face, "As much as that sounds like a great idea, I would like to put a raincheck on that, at least until Omega is fully operational," Eggman opened his mouth, but the chameleon expertly jumped to the next subject, "But let's go back to earlier, I'm curious. What was Metal supposed to set up last night?"

Eggman snapped his fingers, "Ah yes! That," he drifted his gaze over to the blue mech, "He was told to put some dummies into place so we can get to work on Penumbra. Did you?"

"Yes doctor."

"Get to work?" Espio questioned, "So we're going to start him off with target practice? That's a good place to begin as any," he focused on the red and black mech, "Cease Master Emerald circulation."

"CEASING."

The doctor furrowed his brow, "What-"

"The only reason I let the energy flow is because I know that Penumbra is asleep," Espio answered the incoming question, internally snickering when the doctor's mouth slowly shut, "Once we go over there, that won't be the case. He would be able to utilize the energy and cause unnecessary havoc. I would like to avoid all risks," then he added the most important bit, "Is that okay with you, doctor?"

Eggman smirked, "Of course! My grand plan will fall to ruin if that rodent gets free," he moved toward the door, "Now, let's go get our little weapon, shall we?"

On the other side of the underground lab, two Mobians were sleeping soundly. They were together enjoying the warmth of the other's body contrasting the cold floor they were forced to lay upon. Penumbra's arms were still around Cream as he slept, mouth slightly open and a single strand of drool pooling on the tile by his cheek. The bunny was curled up against him, forehead pressed up against the hedgehog's chest fur. There was a small frown on her muzzle even as she rested, Cheese's bow tie tightly gripped in her hands.

There were suddenly tears forming in the corner of the rabbit's close eyelids. It wasn't long before she gasped, eyes flying open from the nightmare she had. Cream, already breathing heavy from her distress-filled sleep, began to hyperventilate when her memories reminded her of the predicament she was in. A harsh sob escaped her throat as she reached and grabbed the white fur in front of her, pulling herself closer than she was before and crying into it.

She then felt a shift. Blinking, moist chocolate irises glanced up to see curious and drowsy red ones staring back at her. She was still wrapped in his hold. Remembering exactly _who_ she was crying on, Cream scrambled out of the hedgehog's weak grip, scooting a few feet away. The bunny looked apologetically at the ground, "I-I'm so sorry Mr. Shadow! I…I d-don't-" she sniffed, "I'm sorry for b-being in your s-space while you were s-sleeping!"

When she didn't get a response, Cream slowly glanced up at the other and saw the sleepiness quickly leave the hedgehog's system. The curiousness remained there, but now it was paired with…concern? Cream didn't know if she had seen this much emotion on Shadow's face before.

The bunny was silent as she watched in slight surprise as the striped Mobian crawled over to her before sitting on his haunches. Cream didn't expect him to reach up to wipe the tears from her face, and she _really_ didn't expect him to smile softly as he did so. The child felt the warmth, both physically and emotionally, and felt a little bit better.

Well, that was until the hedgehog spoke.

He dropped his hands before pointing to himself, the smile waning in wattage, "No Shadow. Penumbra."

"Penumbra?" she repeated, tilting her head. Then words echoed around in her mind:

" _What happened to y-your eye, Mr. Espio?"_

" _S-Someone…Someone scratched it out."_

" _Who did it? It was someone mean, right?"_

" _Y-Yes. Penumbra was…mean, to say the least."_

Cream's heart rate skyrocketed, her body wanting to get away from the not-Shadow in front of her. But then her brain reminded her that _Espio_ was the bad guy, and Penumbra had beat him up. She stared at the hedgehog, seeing that he was looking concerned again. From what she had seen…Penumbra wasn't mean at all.

She calmed herself down, hands still gripping the cloth, and managed to smile back at him. It didn't matter if it was weak and wobbly, he returned the expression immediately, "H-Hi, Mr. Penumbra," _S-So he's trapped here too? What is Mr…bad guy Espio going to do to us?_ The tan rabbit fought back another round of tears – so Penumbra wouldn't be worried – as she introduced herself, "I'm Cream…"

One of Penumbra's ears twitched, "Crrrreeaaammm?"

 _He's like…a baby learning to talk! Is this normal for him? It doesn't matter if it is or not, I'm gonna help him speak! Cheese would've wanted me to…_ Cream choked down a sob, rubbing her nose, "Yeah, my name's Cream! Do you want to be friends with me?"

He blinked, "Cream…?" then he held up a hand, "Friends!"

It took a second, but the bunny high-fived him, giggling. She then gave him a swift hug that he returned with a smile. Cream pulled back, "Yay!" she was glad that she made a new friend, but was suddenly saddened by the fact that they were both stuck in this room, "Mr. Penumbra, how did bad Mr. Espio capture you?"

He furrowed his brow, staring at her oddly, "Essspiooo? Captuurrre?"

Cream thought for a moment, thinking that she was going to be his teacher for the time being, before covering one of her eyes. She then made the meanest face she could manage, "I'm Espio."

Penumbra blankly gazed at her until something clicked in his mind. His expression darkened a bit, "Espio…"

The bunny nodded, using her hands to gesture to help the other understand, "Espio bring Penumbra," she pointed to him before motioning to the whole room, "here?"

Red eyes focused on her and then shifted to the enclosure the duo were sitting in. He was silent for a long moment, and Cream thought that she had to try a different approach, but then he answered, "No."

Cream blinked, "No? Then who-" the rest of the rabbit's words caught in her throat when Penumbra suddenly whipped around and glared at the door on the other side of the room, ears swiveling. She didn't hear nothing for the longest, but then various footsteps reached her ears. Anxiety increasing, Cream brought the red bow tie up to her mouth and whimpered into it.

Nummy, hearing this, gave her a worried glance before positioning himself in front of her, protecting the bunny at all costs. His quills began to bristle when the door slid open and a certain human and chameleon waltzed through.

Cream quickly looked between the two, fearing the worst, and leaning closer to Penumbra, "W-What do you want?" she asked them, voice barely a whisper.

"Nothing from you, little rabbit," Eggman boasted, grinning as he looked at the hedgehog, "We're here for the rodent."

The bunny gasped and grasped one of Nummy's arms, "P-Please don't hurt him!" at the desperation in her voice, Penumbra bared his teeth at the newcomers.

Espio ignored the signs of aggressiveness, "It depends how he acts. If he listens, then no harm will come to him," he bobbed his head over to Eggman, who was shaking an ominous looking remote in his hand.

"Oh ho! He'll have the _shock_ of his life if he doesn't!" the doctor stroked his mustache, and Cream felt her stomach drop. _S-Shock of his life?_ Eggman then did a 'follow me' motion with his unoccupied hand toward Penumbra, "Let's go rodent."

Nummy didn't move. His snarls grew louder, "No."

"No?" A thumb hovered over a button on the remote, "Well then-"

"Wait!" Cream interjected before gently pushing Penumbra forward. He glanced back at her in confusion, "Please go! I don't want you to get hurt! Go! I'll be fine!" the hedgehog frowned at her, reluctant, before he glared at the ground and nodded.

Ears now pinned against his head, Penumbra stood up on two feet and slowly walked forward, crouching a bit. Eggman's grin grew, "Great choice!" the doctor spun on his heel and left the room, Penumbra staring heatedly at the ground as he followed with his tail lowered.

Espio watched them leave with a smirk on his face before sharply looking at the bunny. Cream flinched at the amber gaze, "He'll be back," he let out a single chuckle, "Eventually."

He walked out, and Cream was alone with her tears.

Outside the room, Penumbra was trapped on all sides as he was led on. The man was in front, Espio – as he just learned – was to his side, his metallic prey was on the other, and the not-Sonic was behind him. He wanted to kill all of them. But he couldn't. He would hurt before he got the chance.

Maroon irises trained on the back of the large one in front of him, the gaze leaking poison. That _thing_ that he had made him hurt. He didn't…He didn't like being hurt. The two orbs then glanced to the left, seeing Espio. Penumbra didn't want to do anything more than to finish what he started, ripping his throat right out. But…he didn't want to hurt.

So Nummy did nothing but clench his fists, nails digging into flesh and causing a drop of blood to splatter against the ground.

It wasn't long before Penumbra was shoved into another spacious room. But this time, the four followed him inside. He growled over at them until something else caught his attention. In the middle of the area were faces that he recognized. However…they were different, still and unmoving, hung from the low ceiling. He saw Shadow, Sonic…Espio, and others he couldn't remember the names to.

"Attack," at the voice, Nummy whirled around to see the man smiling at him. That smile was not the same as Cream's. It made his hair bristle, "Attack," he said again, and Penumbra did nothing, not understanding. The man looked at not-Sonic, "Metal, go demonstrate for him."

The metallic being nodded before flying over and punching Sonic right in the face, making him swing violently. The robot went back over to the man, "Attack," the toneless voice told him this time.

Penumbra eventually made the connection, a feral grin spreading across his muzzle. He sprinted across the floor, heading toward the nonmoving Espio in the middle of the room. Then his muscles locked up, and he screamed in pain.

"Not that one," he heard as he convulsed on the floor, "Attack."

The pain stopped, and Nummy got himself back on his feet, limbs still contracting. Tears were in the corners of his eyes. Blinking away the blurriness, he glanced back at the four standing to the side to see that they were waiting for something. Penumbra turned around to examine the things in front of him. There was one of the man on the far right. He wanted to attack that one. But…he didn't think that he could go for anyone who looked like the ones watching him. He didn't want to get hurt.

But the rest were…people he knew…

But he didn't want to feel the pain again.

Gritting his teeth, he pounced at the one closest to him and slashed its stomach. Something gritty spilled all over the floor. Penumbra looked at it before glancing up at the face. It was Sonic. The striped hedgehog turned around to focus on the four behind him.

Two of them were smiling.

* * *

Knuckles knew that something was wrong immediately.

He was standing outside of the house watching as Amy basically assaulted Tails with hugs; she was so happy that the words coming out of her mouth were nothing but nonsense. Charmy and Vector were on either side of the echidna, looking on in amusement as the kit's air was constantly being knocked out of him. Mephiles was standing behind him, taking in the sight with a small smile on his face.

However, Knuckles was frowning. Something was wrong here, actually, many things. One, Tails seemed a little _too_ surprised. Two, the fox's…demeanor was different. And three, the kit wasn't exactly hugging the pinkette back. Knuckles had a suspicion, and well, they _were_ at this dimension's Sonic's house. The Sonic who had a little brother.

The echidna sighed. He really didn't want to disturb this touching moment, "Hey Amy, give the kid some space. You're kind of choking him."

"Huh?" Amy blinked, glancing down at the wheezing fox. She let go instantly, flushing in embarrassment. She chuckled and ruffled the kitsune's yellow bangs as he breathed deeply, "I'm sorry Tails! I got a little bit too excited there!"

Tails was too busy coughing to answer, so Knuckles drawled out, "Amy…" she looked over at him with a raised brow. The echidna gestured over to the bi-tailed Mobian, "That isn't Tails."

"Wait what?" Charmy chirped, confused. He pointed to the fox, "Who else can he be? That's Tails!"

Vector caught on to what Knuckles was implying, and felt sorry for the female hedgehog, "He is, but he's not the Tails from OUR home. This is the other one."

The bee made an 'o' shape with his mouth, "Oh."

Mephiles' heart went out to Amy when he saw her face fall, crushed by this information. He watched her turn around and take a step back from the fox at the door, biting her lip, "Is…Is that true? Are you…the other Tails?"

Said kit, who had regained his breath, smiled up apologetically at her, scratching the back of his head, "Yeah…I am," Tails saw her green eyes get misty, and he waved his hands in front of him. He didn't want her to cry. He had dealt with enough tears for a lifetime, "It's true that I'm not him, but I've met him, and I know where he is!"

Amy rubbed her eyes, "You do?"

"You do?" the others – sans Mephiles – echoed behind her.

Tails nodded before opening the front door wider, "We can talk inside, you know, if you want to?"

"Sure," the pinkette, mood brought back up to a stable level, gave him a slightly wobbly grin before entering the home, followed by Knuckles, Charmy, Vector, and Mephiles. With the latter, Tails' body froze on instinct, horrible memories crashing back into him. But then his mind took over, reassuring himself that this one wasn't bad. The striped hedgehog gave him a meek smile, and it took everything Tails had to return the gesture.

"Sit wherever you like!" he closed the front door, seeing the others get situated. Vector relaxed in the chair in the corner, Charmy was hovering all around the room, Amy sat on one side of the couch, Mephiles was on the other, and Knuckles was lying down on the ground, hands behind his head.

So all of them came from Shadow's 'dream', Tails deduced. Vector and Charmy didn't act different, but maybe he could tell the more he interacted with him. Mephiles wasn't trying to kill his brother, so that was good. Knuckles was the epitome of lazy, half-lidded eyes staring blankly upward and yawning. Amy was happier, sure, but Tails could recognize the hint of concern in those green irises. She was more down to earth than his Amy, as far as he could tell.

Tails swishing behind him, the young genius stepped away from the door and sat on the arm of the couch closest to Amy. The pinkette stopped examining the place and focused on the kid, "So where is he? Is he safe?"

Tails nodded, noticing everyone else's eyes on him, "Yep! He's safe," _Well, if there's a point that he isn't, I'm sure Sonic and Shadow will protect him,_ "He's with my Sonic and Shadow."

"Shadow?" Charmy flew over, beaming, "That's why we came over here, to see of Shadow was still in the hospital! Glad that we didn't go over there first!"

"Me too," Knuckles added, "Woulda been a waste of time."

 _And energy,_ Mephiles thought, looking over at the red echidna, _Especially for him._

"But wait, where did they go?" Vector asked, curious to why the other fox would go anywhere with someone who resembled the Sonic he knew. Sure, Shadow was there, but the croc was certain that the kit was so traumatized that he would stay with his twin.

"Yeah, where are they?" Amy repeated, not sure if she felt relieved or not. Tails was with Shadow, but with Sonic as well. She hadn't met that one yet, only going off of things she was told. He was supposed to be nice, but she wasn't completely sold yet.

At that question, Tails slumped a bit, realizing that he was going to have to explain everything to them. He doubted they will react exactly like how TT did – well, maybe Amy will – but still. It was heavy stuff. Tails took a deep breath, getting himself ready, "Um…they went to try and find where our Eggman is."

"Why?" Charmy questioned.

Tails played with one of his namesakes, steeling himself, "It's…kind of a long story."

"We've got time," Vector helpfully added.

 _I know…_ Tails mentally sighed, "Starting from the beginning, I met your Espio yesterday."

"Seriously?!" the bee gasped, using Mephiles as a landing pad again.

Amy scanned his body, looking for injuries, "You're alright, right? Did he attack you?"

Tails shook his head, "No, because he was _really_ injured."

"Because of Penumbra," everyone nodded at Knuckles.

The kit continued, "So he just let me take him to the hospital to get fixed up, and before you get mad at me," he rushed, seeing the flabbergasted stares, "I didn't have any idea of this dimensional twin stuff! I thought that he was the Espio I knew and that he just…was in a mood at the time."

Vector scoffed, "A _mood._ I wish…"

 _I do too,_ Tails ran a hand down his face, "Uh…so yeah, I took him there. And then I went to find Sonic – mine – so I could take blood samples of-" he paused, debating whether he should mention them or not. He had already told TT, so he couldn't keep it from them, "-of your Vanilla, Cream, and Cheese," there were gasps all around the room, and Mephiles sunk into his seat, hands trembling, "Because we thought they were manmade clones and wanted to test them. We buried them in the field we were in."

"Whoa wait a minute," angry jade irises bore into his, "You thought they were just _clones?_ "

Tails flinched away from Amy, "I'm sorry! I told you, we didn't know anything about you guys yet!"

"Take a breather Amy," Knuckles advised from the floor, "Let him finish," the pinkette huffed, but listened anyway.

The fox resumed his story, "With the blood samples, we figured out that they weren't clones and were kinda stumped on that…until our Knuckles showed up with TT at our door."

 _TT?_ Mephiles thought, forcing the images of dead bunnies to the back of his mind. Charmy asked his question out loud. Tails nodded, "Sonic gave Tails that nickname so that it wouldn't be confusing. But anyway, we met, our minds practically exploded, we went on a little trip to the mountains for no reason, and then we came back to tell Shadow about it."

"How'd he take it?" the croc rose a brow, deeming the little trip unimportant.

Tails chuckled, "He was really surprised," he frowned, "but then got really mad when he was told about Espio. Things started to go downhill from there…" The others listening all shared a look before refocusing on him, keeping quiet, "Shadow wanted to find Espio, who was _supposed_ to be still in the hospital. He wasn't."

Amy sucked in a breath, "That's not good."

"That's an understatement," Tails gave a shaky grin, "Espio…Wait, I forgot to tell you. I only ran into him because our Vanilla called me to come get him; he must have landed near her house or something."

Charmy didn't like the sound of that, "Did he hurt her?"

"Nope, he just waited on me to pick him up," he twirled the fur on his chest, "So, Espio knew where Vanilla and Cream lived. And since he doesn't know he's in another reality…" he trailed off.

It wasn't hard for the others to get what he was saying. Knuckles was sitting up now, violets hard, "What happened?" Tails glanced at him, surprised that the echidna wasn't stomping around and yelling at the top of his lungs in anger. This one was mellower, a trait he thought he'd never see in Knuckles.

The kit blinked away any moisture in his eyes, "Espio went to their house and took Cream. He knocked Vanilla out and…k-" Tails regathered himself, "-killed Cheese."

Silence.

Amy covered her hands with her mouth in shock, "Oh my gosh…"

Mephiles was holding his head in his hands, and Charmy was bawling on his head, "Why?! Why would he do that?!"

Vector stood up from his chair and waved his clenched fists around, "NOW THAT'S TOO FAR! WAS TERRORIZING ONE FAMILY NOT ENOUGH FOR HIM?"

"He didn't know they were different…" Knuckles muttered out.

The croc glared at him, "What? Are you STICKING UP for HIM?"

"No, I'm not," the echidna responded with a sigh, "I'm just saying that he didn't know what was going on. He-" Knuckles paused, turning to Tails, "Does Espio know that Shadow's alive?" the kit nodded solemnly and Knuckles inwardly groaned, rubbing his temples, "Espio's going to use her as a hostage," he met eyes with everyone in the room, "That's why he didn't kill her. He wants to use her to get to Shadow to finish what he started. There's no doubt that he's ticked off about it."

"That makes sense…" Tails mumbled, mind whirling, "And that gives him more incentive to seek Eggman out," at their looks, he elaborated, "The reason they left to find Eggman was because Shadow said that Espio had worked with your Eggman the whole time, so he'd most likely seek ours out. He-"

"I can't believe this…" cut off by Amy, Tails faced her only to be shocked by the amount of rage etched in her features, "I can't believe that you sent my _baby brother_ out there to try to find that maniac!" She stood up and put a finger in his face, "I don't care who he's with! Espio beat Shadow, and with Eggman's help, who _knows_ what could happen! I swear if _one_ hair on his head is-"

Knuckles grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the speechless kit, "You really need to cool it Amy. Your yelling in this emotionally screwed situation isn't going to help anyone," he dropped it and sloppily crossed his arms, "And I doubt that anybody wants to go deaf in here."

Amy glared at him before slumping, "You're right…" she went over to Tails, "Sorry about that," she wrung her hands together, "It's just that we're always together and…it's just hard…"

The kit put a hand on her shoulder, "It's okay, I understand. Sonic and I used to be like that, but then he loosened the reins," he chuckled, "I didn't like it at first, but then I realized that it boosted my confidence. I couldn't have built half of the things I had if Sonic was always around destroying stuff."

That idea took root in her brain, "I'll…keep that in mind."

Tails lowered his hand, "And I agree with Knuckles, keep it down a bit," he jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, "Vanilla's back in Sonic's room, and I don't know if she's awake yet."

Amy placed her hands over her heart, expression pained, "I feel _so_ bad for her…"

Mephiles agreed wholeheartedly, lifting up his head and gazing the way Tails pointed. It was a short hallway that had two doors in it. One Sonic's and the other Tails'. The striped hedgehog wanted to see her, but at the same time, he didn't want that to throw anymore blows to his conscience.

Tails, basically feeling the sorrow Mephiles was emitting on the couch, got his attention after getting the image of a tactful killer out of his mind, "Mephiles," said hedgehog glanced over at him, "This must be hitting you really hard…I heard that you're the one who saw their deaths," bile rose up in the rodent's throat, and he had to force it back down, "I don't know want I would've done if I saw that…"

 _Can the earth just swallow me up…please?_ He held his head in his hands again. Charmy patted him sympathetically on his shoulder.

Vector let out a harsh puff of air, anger slowly cooling down to a sizzle. The croc dropped down in his chair again, sinking into it, "So if those three are out doin' stuff, what were you doin' Tails? Just sittin' around?"

The fox shook his head, "Actually, I was on my computer in the garage, watching for any crimes or disturbances that would be of killer chameleon caliber."

"That's cool I guess," the croc leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees, "So how long will Shadow be out?"

Tails shrugged, "I don't know really. They should be back before long though."

"Can't you call them or something? You gotta tell Shadow we're here!" the hyper bee suggested.

"I should do that huh? I'll be right back when I get them!" Tails spun his namesakes and hovered over to his garage, entering it and looking for his communicator. He found it beside his computer monitor. He pressed the button on the side, "Hey Sonic, you there?" he waited for an answer, but there was nothing. He tried again, "Sonic? Shadow? TT?" Nothing. Tails began to get nervous. He pressed the button again and was about to speak, but a something made him pause, "What the-" he was hearing static in the garage.

The kit searched around for it only to find another communicator in the middle of the floor. Tails deadpanned, letting go of the button. He picked the other one up and dusted it off, "Nice one, Sonic…" Tails placed both of the devices on the nearby workbench and returned to the living room, forcing out a chuckle, "Well…looks like Sonic left his communicator here…"

"Does Shadow have one? Or Tails?" Knuckles asked, and the fox shook his head. The echidna plopped back down on the floor, spread eagled, "Great."

"What are we gonna do now?" Vector grumped.

"…We could always take a nap," the echidna answered.

"But I'm not sleepy!" Charmy argued, proving his point by quickly flying around in circles.

Amy and Mephiles watched him until an idea popped into the latter's head. He reached over for the pinkette's hand and wrote on it. She nodded, "That's a good idea!" Amy turned to Tails, "Got any movies we can watch?"

* * *

Cream had just finished making a bracelet out of Cheese's bow tie when the door to her lonely room opened. Her head whipped up to see Penumbra being shoved inside by Metal Sonic. The hedgehog stumbled forward, quills slightly ruffled. Behind the robot, Eggman stood arrogantly with a broad grin on his face, "Good job during your first session!" Penumbra whirled around and growled deeply at the man, but made no other move. Eggman just laughed before tossing two items into the room, swiftly shutting the door.

The bunny watched the apples bounce once before slowly rolling to a stop right in front of her. One was red, and one was green. She picked up the red one and examined it, seeing that it only had a small bruise. Cream then glanced over at the hedgehog to see him still standing where he was before, glaring at the closed door. She jumped when he suddenly punched the metal, causing the loud thump to echo around the space for a couple of seconds.

Penumbra then slumped to the floor, a low whine reaching the rabbit's ears. Cream gathered up the other apple and trotted over to the other, sitting down on her knees beside him. She held the green fruit out to him, "Mr. Penumbra? I know that you're upset, but you can't let it get to you! That's what my mama always said to me. We're going to be saved by Mr. Sonic soon, so don't worry!" She had to stay strong, for both him and her.

Penumbra peered over at the other, "Sonic?" She smiled and nodded, holding the apple closer to him. His own lips rose at the edges when he took it, "Thank you!" this time, he initiated the hug and Cream giggled.

"You're welcome!" they both parted, and Nummy stared at the food in slight confusion. Cream, figuring that it was time to have another teacher moment, held the fruit up and bit into it. The hedgehog observed this before copying her movements and taking a chunk out of the apple. Apparently finding it delicious, Penumbra devoured it under a minute, making Cream stare in awe, "You ate your apple really fast…"

He tilted his head, "Aapplee?"

Taking advantage of this situation, the bunny nodded, pointed to her mostly whole fruit, "This is an apple!"

Penumbra looked at it, "Apple!"

"Right!" she cheered as she held up a hand; Nummy completed the high-five with a chuckle. Cream then stared at her five-fingered appendage, thinking that she should just keep going with this. Penumbra was a fast learner. The bunny held it up again, "This is my hand!"

"Hand?" the hedgehog put his against hers and left it there, "Hand!"

"Yeah! Good job Mr. Penumbra!"

Said hedgehog, hearing that from her and not _him_ , laughed and clapped his hands.

Outside of the room, Espio was looking in with a wicked smirk on his face. _Looks like we have more than one way to keep the dog leashed. Take away its favorite plaything, and it'll be begging for you to give it back._

"They cannot be that entertaining. Stop dawdling."

Espio glanced askance at Metal Sonic, who was peering back at him. The bot had stopped following Eggman and Omega back when he realized that the group was missing one. The chameleon chastised, "We have plenty of time to do whatever we want. Stop whining."

"I do not whine."

The ninja scoffed, walking away from the mirror.

"Keep telling yourself that."

* * *

 **Next chapter…fear the piko piko!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer- If I could, I would, but I can't.**

 **Chapter 15- Just imagine**

Metal Sonic simply observed the other two occupants of the office they were currently in, paying no attention to the soft mechanical tones coming from the computer screens in the background. His red opticals were trained on Omega and Espio, the latter especially. Eggman had left the office a while ago, implicitly telling Metal to watch the newer duo and make sure they didn't try to destroy something.

They were doing nothing of the sort. The other robot was standing there silently as the chameleon checked his systems, writing down anything that was wrong with the mech and listing everything that needed to be replaced. Metal vaguely noticed that he was doing this with his left hand, and the bot's database deduced that this was somewhat uncommon. This discovery would be even rarer if the ninja was as efficient with his right as well as his left. It would be interesting to test when the reptile's other arm was healed.

Metal was bored, if that wasn't clear. Unfortunately he was programed to feel the results of being poorly stimulated.

The reflective Sonic had expected the ninja to head straight for the computers once the doctor was out of sight, or at least told Omega to fire some sort of artillery at him. That didn't happen. All Espio did was politely ask for a pen and paper, and – after processing that request and internally disarming all of his defense systems – Metal provided the items.

He could not figure the chameleon out. Omega was simple; he followed the ninja's orders. Nothing else was to be said. But Espio…he couldn't categorize. One moment, the Mobian was Eggman's – for lack of a better title – yes-man, laughing at the jokes, interested in all of the doctor's failed schemes, and so forth. But in the next, Metal would notice things. They were subtle. The eye twitch, the slight formation of a frown, or even the glint in the single amber eye. Metal didn't know what they meant; however, if he found out that the ninja was going to negatively affect his chances in killing his flesh and blood copy, then Espio would have to be removed.

"Metal."

Gold met red as the pen was set down. Metal Sonic tilted his head up a degree, not expecting a direct conversation. He had not forgotten the confrontation he and the chameleon had before they went to retrieve that striped hedgehog. The robot decided that if the other was civil, he would attempt to be as well. Plus, this could be an opportune time to analyze the ninja more.

The metallic Sonic replied, "What is it?"

There was heavy silence for a moment as that sole iris slid down the length of his artificial body. Metal felt like he was being taken apart and examined piece by piece right then and there. He refrained from saying anything, waiting for the other to continue. He was sure that no one missed the slow clenching of his fists, however.

It rung true when the ghost of a smirk spread across Espio's face, making Metal tense. Then the expression was gone, and the robot could not predict were this conversation would go. Metal disliked how unpredictable the other seemed to be.

"Why do you work for Eggman?"

 _Severely_ disliked.

Bur nonetheless, Metal had formulated an appropriate answer, "Cooperating with the doctor raises my chances in killing my worthless copy."

Espio hummed, facing him fully, "And what are those chances currently?"

Metal paused for a moment. He calculated all of the attempts he had made and eventually came up with a statistic…a laughable one. Even if he included the doctor in the equation, the results didn't look that much better. But a chance was a chance, and Metal wasn't letting go of it, "Ten percent alone, thirteen if I'm partnered up with the doctor."

The chameleon scoffed, and glowing eyes flashed. The mortal shouldn't test him. He could end his life in the fraction of a second, "What if I told you that I could triple, or even quadruple, those odds," he grinned mischievously and took a step closer to the blue robot, "with Eggman out of the picture?"

Espio was confident, Metal knew that. But what he _didn't_ know was if the ninja was telling the truth. He couldn't picture it. A _forty_ percent success rate? It was still under half, yes, but it was significantly higher than a measly ten percent. But it wasn't possible. There was no way that this injured chameleon could do such a thing.

"Impossible," was Metal's only response.

The purple one shrugged a single shoulder, "I understand what you're implying. Getting rid of him is nothing short of impossible, especially if his guard dog is going to prevent that from happening," Was the chameleon wanting to be killed? Because Metal was one second away from plunging his claws in the other's abdomen, "However…I think the chances can be upped another…fifteen percent or so if we get the doctor to be subordinate to _us._ "

Metal didn't say anything; he just stared. His thoughts were going haywire. He had never even _entertained_ the idea of him being in charge. It was either he stayed partnered with the doctor, or he killed him off. With the robot calling the shots…

"Think about it," Espio continued, "We get access to everything Eggman has at the drop of a dime. All of his supplies, his command over the other robots here, and his _blueprints…_ " the ninja approached until he was nearly face-to-face with the Sonic lookalike. The maliciousness in the chameleon's gaze was unmeasurable, "We'd be unstoppable, and there will be a hedgehog dead at your feet in no time."

"HE IS RETURNING."

At Omega's words, Espio bravely patted Metal on the shoulder before strolling back over to his place beside the red and black mech. The grin was still present, "Imagine it."

Metal was.

"Great news!" Eggman bounded in, smirking like the Cheshire cat.

"What is it, doctor?" Espio asked, the grin had morphed into a curious expression. Metal was just now seeing how well of an actor the ninja was.

The human rubbed his hands together in excitement, "I've got a genius plan!"

What Eggman called genius was what Metal called flawed, "Will it work?"

"Of course it will!" Doubt radiated in the room, coming from two sources. The scientist didn't pick up on it. Instead, he let out a loud laugh, "It's flawless! You see, I came up with an idea to use a distraction method to retrieve the Master Emerald."

Espio rose a brow; Metal could tell that he was genuinely interested, "Distraction?"

The man nodded, "Yes! Listen, if I take some robots to Station Square and start attacking, the annoying pincushion and his friends will be there in an instant. _Not_ were the Master Emerald is!"

Metal crossed his arms. This plan was unsatisfactory, "You miscalculated, doctor. I am sure that the guardian will stay with the gem. I have little belief that he would leave his perch and take the risk."

"You're negativity won't work this time, ho ho!" Eggman put his hands on his hips, radiating arrogance, "It won't matter if the echidna leaves or not, because if he doesn't, you'll be able to overpower him anyway!"

"Me?" Metal's systems processed this, "So we are going to split up?"

The man chuckled, "Precisely! I will take my bots," he looked over to the bulky one in the room, "and Omega to the city to do some damage," Eggman then pointed to the blue mech, "You will take Espio to steal the Master Emerald," the ninja and not-Sonic shared a look.

"I'm…going with him?" Espio frowned, "Forgive me for complaining, but I don't wish to be carried like a child."

"Well that's too bad for you, because you're not staying here."

"But…" the chameleon and robot said at the same time. The former quieted, and Metal continued, "But doctor, me carrying him is not optimal for flight."

Eggman huffed, glaring at the two, "You _will_ do what I _say!_ The plan will fail if you don't, do you understand? And if that happens, I may have to rethink my opinions of you two!"

Silence.

The man smiled, "Good. Now, I've made preparations and-"

"We need to go visit Penumbra," Espio cut in, this time, not looking apologetic. Eggman rose a curious brow a him, lips twitching downwards, "If we are going to bring the Master Emerald here, we need to train him not to use its energy. Because he _will_ escape if given the chance to."

"Hmm…and that would not be beneficial…" Eggman turned on his heel, "Let's go then!"

They were at the door within minutes. The human scanned his hand and the small group walked in, watching as a growling Penumbra put himself between them and the quaking rabbit. Eggman glanced at Espio and nodded, holding the remote control in his hand.

The ninja said aloud, "Omega, activate Master Emerald energy circulation."

"ACTIVATING." There was a short pause, "HE'S PULLING THE ENERGY."

At that, Eggman pushed the button, and the hedgehog writhed on the floor in pain. Cream was the only one affected by it, screaming out in shock and worry, "Mr. Penumbra!" she turned to the man, "Stop! P-Please stop!" And Eggman did…after a minute. The hedgehog slowly pulled himself together, shaking from exertion, anger, and fright. His ears were lowered, and his teeth were bared, but overall, he looked pathetic.

"HE'S PULLING."

The scientist pushed the button once more, and the process started all over again. Penumbra writhing, Cream yelling, and the rest observing dispassionately.

"Mr. Penumbra!" the bunny's cheeks were wet, "Stop doing what they d-don't like! I-It's hurting you!" Eggman removed his thumb, and the hedgehog could barely stay on his feet, "Please!" Cream added.

"HE'S PULLING."

Electricity pulsated through Penumbra's veins, sending him to the floor once more. However, when the attack was over this time, the hedgehog clumsily backed up until he was touching Cream, tail tucked and body harshly trembling. There were tears leaking from his eyes, and the rabbit hugged him tightly.

Metal and Espio focused on Omega, who responded, "HE'S NOT PULLING."

The chameleon turned to the rotund man and gave a small grin, "I believe that we're done here, don't you?"

* * *

Beep, beep, beep…

 _Again with this…_

Beep, beep, beep…

 _Back in a stupid hospital…_

Beep, beep, beep…

 _But wait, did I ever leave? I'm a still in Metal City? Everything that happened seemed like a dream. Mephiles being in my damn room, me going to find Stripes' MIA pet, me searching all night, Stripes himself finding me…_ A deep frown marred his face… _that two-tailed freak blabbing his mouth, and another me beating my ass…_

"Get up, Faker. I know that you're awake."

Sonic heard his heart rate monitor skyrocket, and it took everything in him to not smash the damn thing to pieces. The blue hero cracked open his eyes and groaned in pain at the sudden light impinging them. The hedgehog touched his face and winced at the many bruises that he felt. Shit. All of that _did_ actually happen.

When it didn't hurt (much) to keep his eyelids open, emerald irises scanned the hospital room, zeroing in on the dark figure on the other side leaning against the wall. Sonic took in the other's condition, inwardly relieved that the striped hedgehog was banged up like he was. There was bruising and bandages, and a lot of cloth was wrapped around Stripes' head.

Feeling those red orbs on him, Sonic carefully sat up in his bed, glancing down and seeing that the wrappings around his chest had been replaced. Also, he could tell that he had gotten new stitches. Wonderful.

Stripes pushed off the wall and made his way toward the end of the speedster's mattress. Once there, he crossed his arms and grunted out, "We need to talk."

Sonic glared hard at him, inwardly cursing at how that simple action made his bruised face throb, "We don't have to talk about _shit,_ " he tore his gaze from the other and trained it on the door, "Where's the other me-" _Why…Why is this happening?_ "-so I can beat that grinning sonuva bitch's ass," he met the darker one's stare again, "Then I'll come back for you _Stripes._ "

Said hedgehog just scoffed, "What are you going to do in this condition? He beat you once, and I won't stop him if he does it again. Hell, I might join, after what you did," Stripes gave him a heated look.

Sonic snorted, chuckling mirthlessly, "That freak had it coming," he jabbed a thumb at himself, "That was _none_ of his business to share; it was _mine!_ " he snarled.

Stripes (unfortunately, dammit) wasn't affected by it, "If I had it my way, hedgehog, the information wouldn't have been shared," Sonic blinked in slight surprise for a moment, "But things _happen_ Faker, and you acting like that will not be tolerated here."

"Like hell it isn't," the azure hedgie spat, "I can do whatever I want! Since when did you think that you can tell me what to do, asshole?"

"When I realized that you've been transported to _my_ world," Stripes bared his teeth, slightly leaning over him. Sonic resisted the urge to flatten his ears against the back of his head at that harsh reminder. The other kept going, "If you don't change your idiotic ways hedgehog, there will be more people than just _me_ to keep you in check."

Sonic narrowed his eyes, his grip on this sheets tightening, "I'm not scared of you _or_ him," _Or should I call him me?_ "And I'll do what I freakin' _please_ until I leave this stupid place and go back!"

At that, there was a glint in Stripes' red rubies that Sonic couldn't really decipher. It was gone so quickly that he was questioning whether it was actually there or not. The standing one looked away and gazed out of the window to his side, "I'll say it one more time, and I won't say it again. Your home is _gone_ , Faker. You can't go back."

The blue hero's heart skipped a beat before anger overrode any other emotion he was threatened to feel, "What do you mean gone?!" The anger didn't completely` do its job this time. _You weren't…You weren't lying about that?_ "Answer me bastard!"

"Calm down!" Stripes barked out, quills bristling, "We're in a hospital!" they both did so, if only marginally. The darker one resumed, "You can't go back there," Sonic's teeth clenched together, "It's physically impossible to."

"What the– _why_ the… What in the _hell_ am I supposed to do then?!" Sonic shouted. He didn't care that he was in a hospital. They could go fuck themselves; he was pissed _,_ "I _refuse_ to stay here being someone's stupid double!"

The hero's anger then abated a bit when he saw the somewhat lost look on the other's face, "I don't know, Faker. We're dealing with one thing at a time right now."

Sonic wanted to rip his quills out, "What _else_ could _possibly_ be going on now that's more important than-"

"The Cream here got kidnapped," and before the blue hedgehog had the time to process that information, Stripes added, "by Espio," Sonic stared at him, for once, speechless. The Ultimate Lifeform nodded, "He went to her house, knocked out her mother, killed her Chao, and took her. _That's_ what we're focused on right now."

Sonic surprised himself. The reason why was because the first thing he thought of after learning that was Mephiles' voice. He thought back to what that hedgehog said. About Station Square being destroyed. About…Vanilla and her little brat _dying._ Did that…actually…

"Stripes," Chaos- _dammit_. That came out weaker than it was supposed to. Sonic tried again, clearing his throat and gaining the other's attention. Hard emeralds bored into serious scarlets, "Are the rabbits from my world…" he attempted to finish, but his voice wouldn't let him.

He didn't need to though. Stripes nodded slowly, fists clenching, "Espio's robots got to them in the city."

Sonic bit the inside of his cheek, drawing blood. _They died because I wasn't there. I was careless, and they died._ The hero's expression darkened considerably, _I'm sure as hell not going to let that happen again. That damned chameleon had messed with my world, and he's going to pay full price for it._

"We figured that Espio would meet up with my world's Eggman," Stripes explained, scratching at the bandages around his head, "One of his old bases was White Acropolis, where we found you. Back there, I know I told you that I didn't care what you were doing in the lab, but now I need to know. _Why_ were you up there and messing with the computers?"

"I was tryin' to find out where the eff I was _,_ " Sonic lied smoothly. The last thing he wanted was the other becoming more curious. He had to do this alone so there wouldn't be any more damned liabilities, "I was in the middle of _nowhere._ "

Stripes looked him over for a second before punching the headboard, an inch away from Sonic's face, "You're a horrible liar, just like your twin," he growled, and the hero bared his teeth right back at him, somewhat thrown off that the striped one had been able to tell. Rubies narrowed, "What were you _doing_ there?"

Sonic just smirked, the sore muscles in his face pulling painfully, "It's none of your _business_ , Stripes."

Stripes' other hand twitched, like he was going to throw a punch, but the hedgehog did the opposite. He leaned back and took a step away from the bed, "Fine," he ground out before turning on his heel and heading towards the exit.

The hero's eyes widened marginally, "And where do you think _you're_ going, jackass?"

"I'm going to continue my search," Stripes bit back, looking over his shoulder at Sonic in disdain, " _You_ can do whatever you want," he opened the door and immediately sighed in exasperation. The bedridden hedgehog shifted his focus to the blue hedgie at the door who was grinning at the striped one and rubbing the back of his neck. Sonic glared at his cheeky double – after inwardly snickering at the giant bruise on the other's abdomen – while Stripes folded his arms in front of his chest, "How long were you there, Faker?"

The one addressed shrugged, "I dunno…the whole time?" he chuckled at the Ultimate Lifeform's unenthused stare, "What? I had to make sure that you wouldn't randomly attack him!" his green gaze drifted off of Stripes and onto Sonic. The hero saw the expertly hidden enmity within them, "Or y'know, vice versa."

Sonic bared his teeth and the other just gave a grin, both refusing to look away.

Stripes glanced between the two before pushing the one closest to him out of the doorway, "Let's get moving hedgehog before you set off another bomb."

"Hey!" the speedster protested, "It's not _my_ fault he's unstable! Maybe you should get him a chili dog, that should loosen 'im up!"

The door shut behind them, and Sonic scowled at it for a long while. Then he looked blankly out the window at Station Square…the city that was no longer his.

* * *

Rouge stretched her arms over her head as she strolled out of the GUN base. Her limp was nearly unnoticeable as she did so, rolling her shoulders to loosen them up. Sitting in front of a screen for hours on end was _not_ and will never be good for anyone's joints. And her workday (though, she technically hadn't been working) wasn't even _done_ yet.

The albino Mobian cracked her back and sighed, feeling the sun's rays and the gentle wind on her face. She was more than happy to take a break from her little mission, because no file she had searched so far had any clue to where Eggman could be. For the last few hours, all Rouge did was click, skim, close, and repeat. Nothing entertaining in the slightest.

But now, it was lunchtime. Actually, it was a little later than the normal time Rouge would gorge herself and relax, but the Commander had to be on his monthly. She hadn't been doing her paperwork fast enough – or at all – and he was cranky about it. He would be okay without it being done for today.

Bright teal irises glanced up and down the street she was on, seeing the pedestrians and cars moving about. She ignored all of them and tried to search out a good café for she had not fixed herself anything to eat. Hmm. Or maybe she could just go to Sonic's place and check up on the kit and Vanilla. Yeah, she'd do that. Plus, she could get free food.

Flapping her purple wings, the GUN agent took flight, soaring over the heads of the crowds. A small frown marred her face as she thought about Vanilla and how hard all of this had to be for her. Her pet was killed _and_ her child was missing? That had to be every mother's worst nightmare.

Also, Rouge wondered what Cream must be feeling right now. Confused, no doubt. The bunny had _no_ idea about what was going on. Espio, to Cream, was a dependable friend that had turned her world to shambles. Rouge just hoped that they would find some type of lead fast before any more…permanent damage was done.

"Hey Rouge!"

The bat slowed down in the air at the sound of her name. She glanced down and searched the crowd until she saw Amy waving up at her, running in her direction. Rouge returned the wave as she grounded herself, putting her hand on her hip, "Hi hon."

Amy stopped in front of her, eyeing the foot she had hurt earlier, "How's the foot?" she asked, voice holding a bit of concern.

Rouge flipped a hand, grinning, "It's nothing to worry about."

"Great!" the pinkette beamed, linking her hands behind her back and rocking on the balls of her feet, "So are you on your lunch break?"

Rouge nodded before pointing the way she was going, "Yeah, but I was actually heading over to Blue's so I-" the bat paused in thought, realizing that, like Cream, Amy didn't know anything either. Should she tell her? The bunny _was_ the female hedgehog's best friend. But was Rouge ready for more tears? No, no she wasn't. The agent mentally sighed and got herself ready for what's to come, "Amy, I have to tell you something."

But the pinkette wasn't paying attention to her anymore. Her hand was held against her forehead to block the bright rays of the sun, "Oh! Is that Sonic over there?" Rouge blinked before turning to follow her gaze, seeing the blue hedgehog in the shadows of an alley way. He was just staring at the people passing by with a frown. There was a worried expression on Amy's face, "Do you know what's wrong with him, Rouge?"

The agent pursed her lips. Sure, she was curious about Blue's disposition, but she was more concerned with why he was back so early. Did he, Shadow, and TT find anything? Where _were_ Shadow and TT? "I sure don't, sugar," Rouge answered before lifting herself off the ground, "But I plan on finding out!" she flew over the traffic, and Amy carefully weaved her way through it to the other side of the street. As the feminine pair got closer, they realized that there was a lot more wrong with the hero than just his external mood.

It looked like he had taken a beating. There were nasty purple bruises all over his body, especially on his face. There was also bandaging wrapping around the speedster's chest, hiding whatever wound it was protecting from view. Rouge was fretting now. What in the heck happened to him?

Beside her, Amy was having a heart attack, "What…? Rouge that's…that's the most I've seen him hurt in a long time!" the pinkette then broke out in a run, "Sonikku!" Rouge was on her tail, watching as Sonic searched for the one that called him, eventually finding the duo. The bat found it strange that his gaze never left her as they approached him in the alley. Amy looked like she wanted to throw herself at him, but she held back. A close-up of the hero's condition was enough to deter her, "What happened to you? Why are you all hurt?"

Sonic didn't say anything at first; he was eyeing Rouge up and down with a blank face. The agent furrowed her brow at that, for the first time wanting to be nowhere near the hedgehog. Rouge took this time to study the other more, taking in the crossed arms, the different aura, and how just…unapproachable Blue seemed to be.

Rouge sucked in a breath when she eventually solved the puzzle. She narrowed her teal orbs at him, stepping to the side to slightly shield Amy from the 'hero', "You're the other Sonic."

"Other Sonic?" Amy repeated, confused, as she looked between the bat and hedgehog, "What?"

The blue Mobian tilted his head at the bat, actually meeting her gaze for the first time, "And you gotta be Stripes' bitch, right?"

Rouge gaped for a second. She had hit the nail right on the head with this one. The agent rose her hand to backhand the rude hedgehog into oblivion, but before she could do that, something red filled her vision for a split second. Then it was gone, along with Sonic.

Hearing a yell, Rouge whipped her head to the side to see the speedster bounce against the hard asphalt before rolling to a stop. He was hissing under his breath and holding his side in obvious pain. Rouge blinked, turning to the pinkette beside her, who was glaring at the downed rodent, piko piko hammer gripped tightly in her hands. That girl had a nice arm.

"My Sonic would _never_ say anything like that!" Amy yelled, wielding her weapon higher, "Who are you and what have you done with my Sonikku?!" She crept closer, and Rouge saw the flash of horror on the male hedgehog's face. The agent was thinking about calling the pinkette off – Sonic _was_ already hurt – but then:

"Shit!" Sonic struggled to get his feet back under himself, "DD! Get your crazy friend away from me!"

 _DD?_ Rouge thought, _What kind of nickname…_

She glanced down at herself.

…

… _That hedgehog is dying today._

Blood boiling, Rouge swooped over and wrenched Sonic's arms behind his back before he could run away. Anger fueling her actions, she slammed the hedgie into the nearest wall, expression serious as curses spewed from the blue one's mouth. She kept him there even as he wiggled. The agent glanced back to see Amy just as angry as she was, "You ready to knock some sense into him hon?"

The pinkette got into a ready stance, "More than ready!"

"Alright, on three!"

"Let go of me!" Sonic bucked, but couldn't get free, "You psychotic bitch!"

Rouge tightened her grasp, "You're really aren't helping your cause, _Sonic._ One!"

The azure hedgie tried to kick.

"Two!"

Amy swung back.

"Three!"

Rouge took a step out of the way, and the pinkette let loose. There was a loud crash…but it didn't come from Amy's hammer. The trio were frozen in time. Amy was an inch from making contact with Sonic, said hedgehog was stock-still with his ears twitching, and Rouge had turned her head to peer out of the alley.

The female rodent slowly glanced over at the bat, lowering her weapon, "Rouge…" she whispered, "What was that?"

Another loud crash was her answer, followed by panicked yelling. Then there was the telltale sound of gears whirling.

"Robots," Sonic growled out, "Mother-effing _robots._ "

* * *

Mephiles let out an inaudible sigh as he sunk in to the comfortable couch, staring dejectedly at the ceiling. There was muted laughter going on all around him, but he didn't take part in it. To be honest, he didn't know what the movie they were watching was about. This one or the one they had viewed before. He had been too distracted by…everything else to enjoy himself.

Feeling a nudge on his leg, Mephy glanced down to see Charmy, who was sitting cozily on the floor, gazing up at him with a brow raised. The bee smiled and gestured to the movie; Mephiles nodded and returned the gesture, training his light green eyes on the moving pictures. But they still didn't absorb anything. His mind was just too busy.

The striped hedgehog looked over to the others in the room. Knuckles was walking on the line between consciousness and unconsciousness, Vector was paying apt attention to the TV in his chair, Amy was giggling at something that was said, and Charmy was on the floor beside the echidna, eating some chips. Tails had returned to the garage to get on his computer.

More air passed through Mephiles' lips as he propped his chin on his hand, leaning against the arm of the couch he was sharing with the pinkette. He knew that the kidnapping of Cream was thought about in the others' minds, but he figured that they pushed it to the deepest parts so they could have a little reprieve from the pain.

But Mephy couldn't do that, it was constantly at the forefront of his mind. The situation this bunny had been put in was whittling away at his psyche. He couldn't push it away because the spot he would push it to was already filled with guilt from the situation of _another_ bunny. He couldn't do anything but worry. He couldn't stand to see this Cream die. One dead rabbit was enough.

Another reason Mephiles couldn't give himself a break was that Vanilla was _in the house with them_. To him, she was like a ghost that would both make him happy and tear him to pieces at the same time. Mephy didn't know if he could-

His thoughts scattered when there was a creak behind him.

Mephiles snapped his head around to see Sonic's bedroom door opening, the sound gaining the attention of the others as well. As soon as Vanilla appeared, his heart began to hurt. She was carrying an empty plate as she slowly shuffled away from the door. There were dark bags under her eyes, and her dress (witch was a drastic change from a GUN uniform) was wrinkled and unkempt.

When she made it to the living room, dull chocolate irises scanned the space. A meek smile appeared on a tired muzzle, "Hello sweeties…" Mephiles bit his lip, the sight of her making him want to melt into the floor and just…and just… The shadow hedgehog's ears lowered some when she continued, "Do you know where…" she sniffed, "…Tails is?" Mephy could tell that she was trying _so_ hard to keep herself together in front of the group. Her gaze swept the area, waiting for an answer, before she landed on him. A spark of confusion was present in her eyes until they were warm again, "Are you…a new friend?"

Gulping, Mephiles nodded a yes.

"That's nice honey…"

There was a beat of silence until Amy spoke up, pointing a slightly shaking finger to the next room, "I think Tails is in the garage um…Ms. Vanilla," it was clear that seeing her _alive_ was throwing everyone off. The rabbit just nodded before heading in that direction, disappearing from sight. Mephiles breathed in like some heavy weight was lifted off of him.

"That poor woman…" Knuckles muttered from his place on the floor.

"Chaos, I just want to wring that chameleon's little neck!" Vector did the motions, teeth clenched.

"I just want to hug her…" Amy sighed, messing with a thread on her dress, "But it would be so awkward! Does she even know about us?"

Charmy ate another handful of chips, "I don't know, but it didn't seem like it!"

 _It seemed like she was barely with us at all,_ Mephiles thought, rubbing his temples and eyeing the last place Vanilla was. She was like a zombie. He doubted she would be normal again unless her daughter came home.

"I really hope that this Cream's okay, if only for her sake," Amy leaned back into the couch, not paying attention to the movie anymore, "I want Shadow to find _something_ while he's out…"

"I do too," the echidna replied, "But you know how Espio is…"

"I wish he was like the one here!" Charmy hovered into the air, gesturing, "Because he's awesome!"

"Being detectives and all, the Chaotix would be in their element right now if they helped," Vector mused, wondering what his other self could be doing at the moment.

"But they have a job to do," Knuckles scratched his nose, "And plus, we don't know if we actually need them or not. Shadow could be coming back with information right now."

Before anything else was said, there were footsteps approaching the living room again. Mephiles glanced that way to see Vanilla returning to where they were. That friendly smile was still on her face as she walked over to the couch. Being polite, Mephy scooted over to make room. She sat down, and he was squished between her and Amy.

Vanilla glanced at all of them again, "Tails told me all about you," she said warmly, "And how…" she paused, taking a deep breath, "And how your Espio has affected your precious lives. I'm…I'm terribly sorry that it happened…"

"Don't be sorry!" Amy leaned forward, face determined, "None of it was your fault! You shouldn't feel bad about any of it!" Mephiles nodded at her, agreeing. Shockingly, Vanilla being this close wasn't reminding him of the cruel past.

Knuckles sat up into a sitting position, "All of it is Espio's, well, _ours,_ " his nose scrunched up, disliking that phrasing, "And we can't change what happened. But now, we'll do anything we can to get Cream back."

Vector gave her a smile, "Shadow's already on the case, so you don't have to worry."

"Yeah!" Charmy chirped.

Tears began to well up in Vanilla's eyes, and Mephiles suspected that they weren't ones of sadness. The rabbit wiped them away, "Thank you so much sweeties. I…You don't know my daughter and yet you still…" Feeling brave, Mephy put a hand on her shoulder and gave it a squeeze; he smiled when she looked at him, hopefully conveying the message he wanted to. Vanilla's cheeks got damper, "I'm so thankful…for all of your support…"

Not a second after she finished, Tails burst into the room, looking frenzied. He saw the rabbit and grinned apologetically, "I'm really sorry if I'm interrupting something important, but robots are attacking Station Square! We gotta go!"

Everyone – sans Vanilla – were suddenly on their feet, "What?!" Amy shrieked, "Right now?"

Tails nodded vehemently, "Right now! And since Sonic, TT, and Shadow aren't back yet, we have to do something!"

"Do you have something we can use as weapons?" Vector asked, shifting his weight back and forth.

"Like bats?" Amy added.

Tails tilted his head at her, perplexed, "But can't you-" he shook his head, "Nevermind that," he did a 'follow me' motion, "I've some stuff in the garage! We can leave out of there too!" A stampede of feet passed the kit, heading into his man-cave. Tails then glanced over to see Mephiles still standing by the couch, looking like a deer in headlights, "Aren't you coming?"

Mephy shook his head and plopped back down on the sofa. A wobbly smile spread across his muzzle as he pointed to a surprised Vanilla.

The yellow fox understood, "You're staying with her?" the hedgehog nodded, "Well…okay then, stay safe!" then he was gone.

Mephiles held his head in his hands. He couldn't do it. He couldn't go out there again. What if he screwed up a second time? What if Amy died because of it? Knuckles? Vector? Charmy? Tails? Oh Chaos, if that had happened, then he'd have people from _both_ dimensions hating him. It was best if he stayed here. He couldn't hurt anyone here. And Vanilla needed some sort of company, right? Right.

The hedgehog's ears perked at the sound of the garage door opening. Voices got softer, and the door closed back down again. They were gone.

"Um, Mephiles, right?"

Said hedgehog eventually lifted his head and focused on her. She had a pensive look on her face, but it was still inviting. He gave a quick nod. Vanilla folded her hands in her lap after wiping away more wetness, "You seem like you have something on your mind, sweetie. Do you want to share?" Mephiles hesitated. He couldn't tell her, could he? Well…technically she had no relation with the other Cream, family or otherwise. She had never gotten to know her. Maybe this will help him cope? Getting this off his chest?

Vanilla saw his uncertainty, "Is it a secret? I won't tell anyone if you don't want me too; I can just be here to listen," she paused, brow furrowing some, looking somewhat sorry, "Well, not listen but…" Mephiles silently laughed at her, easing the other and causing her to smile as well.

Mephy then nodded at her before standing up and searching around for paper and something to write with. He was ready to face this mountain.

Now, whether he would get over it, or get shoved off the highest cliff, he didn't know.

But he was really rooting for the former.

* * *

Up on Angel Island, the Master Emerald was sitting high on its perch, and its guardian was right next to the jewel, the green pulsating glow mixing with the echidna's red fur. Knuckles was standing on the steps of the shrine, overlooking as much of the floating isle as he could see. He was going to make sure that there wasn't the slightest chance that the ME would fall into the wrong hands. He would fight to the death if he had to. Sure, he had slipped up multiple times in the past, but he had learned from his mistakes.

Knuckles knew that he could have been some help if he had gone with Sonic and Shadow, but he felt like he was more needed here. Those two had long since taken care of themselves, and he was sure that TT was in safe hands. Also, he knew that he wouldn't feel at completely at ease unless he was up here. If he had gone, he would've been distracted the whole trip and that could've caused a huge problem.

And to be honest, any long-term exposure to those two hedgehogs arguing would make anyone go insane. Hopefully TT wouldn't be too far gone. The fox-

At that moment, Knuckles' eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell forward. His body rolled all the way down to the bottom of the shrine, gathering dirt, sticks, and bruises as he went. There was a large cloud of dirt when the echidna finally stopped, his unconscious form unmoving.

Espio made himself visible, lowering his hand. He smirked, "That was easier than I thought it would be."

* * *

 **Next chapter…time to fight!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer- I tried to bargain with SEGA; they hissed at me.**

 **Chapter 16- Failure**

Shadow let out a barely audible sigh as he gazed blandly at the passing landscape, crouching on the wing of the Tornado as it passed through a thin cloud. A black ear flicked when a boisterous laugh came from his side, and piercing scarlets drifted in that direction only to see Sonic talking animatedly to TT. The blue speedster was settled in the seat behind the fox, chatting away. The kitsune was focused on his piloting duties; however, it was clear that he was listening, if the occasional twitch of the lips were anything to go by.

"Yeah, a werehog! I'm not even kiddin'! It all started-"

The Ultimate Lifeform blocked the conversation out, not remotely interested. He had been ignoring the Faker's tales basically the whole trip. Ever since the hedgehog duo had left the hospital and regrouped with the fox who had stayed _well_ away from it, Sonic had begun sharing his whole life story. Shadow guessed that it was to gain the vulpine's trust, but hell, it could be just that the annoying hero like to talk. He wouldn't be surprised really.

But what made Shadow pause was that TT had been actually paying apt attention, and that he seemed comfortable (or maybe less terrified would be the better description) around Sonic. Then Shadow figured that anyone would be relaxed around someone who had saved them from harm. It didn't take long for TT to ask questions about the hero's adventures, and the blue blur became even _more_ enthusiastic to drone on and make his incessant voice migraine inducing.

Shadow had to endure it leaving Station Square, going one of Eggman's abandoned labs located deep within a jungle, searching around the lab (finding nothing there), and now as they flew in the direction of Station Square. The Faker, who had lost his communicator, wanted to check if Tails had found anything before the trio potentially ventured to distant locations.

The striped hedgehog had been irritated at the other's request, but he allowed it, knowing that he'd be hearing the speedster complain if he didn't. TT had shyly agreed that it was a good idea.

"And when I tell you that he liked chocolate, he _loved_ the stuff-"

Shadow gave his bluer rival a fleeting glance, seeing the cobalt hedgie comfortably sitting in his seat, arms crossed behind his head and legs crossed. He was smiling as he studied the sky above them, recalling his tale. Shadow couldn't help the ghost of a frown that marred his face, shifting his stare down to the prominent dark purple bruise on his rival's abdomen. The Ultimate Lifeform unconsciously rubbed his temple, feeling the bandages that ran around his head.

Despite the rather noteworthy injuries the pair of 'hogs had received from their confrontation with another speed demon earlier that day, Faker hadn't really spoken about the fight…or the one who caused it. Shadow was no fool. He felt the tension between those two. He just thought that Sonic would be either making jokes about his mouthy doppelganger, or discussing how to put his 'Everyone, let's be friends!' plan into play. But no. Sonic was avoiding the subject altogether. Maybe all of this was still soaking in for him? Life throwing something as drastic as this at someone would fry anyone's brain.

Shadow's mind shutting down at seeing Rogue for the first time was fine enough proof of that.

And plus Cream's disappearance wasn't helping matters either.

"D-Did it hurt t-transforming?" TT stuttered from the front, and Shadow heard an amused scoff.

"Hurt? Nah, the stretching of muscles and cracking of bones felt just like a back massage!"

"O-Oh…"

Yellow furred ears lowered some – Shadow thought that TT must've taken Faker's light hearted jest as something else – and Sonic leaned forward in his seat, soft laughter escaping his lips, "I wasn't bein' nasty, promise! Kinda forgot that you're not really used to me and my jokes yet, bud!" he leaned back in his seat, and Shadow saw the slight darkening of the other's emerald irises, "A total turnaround from what you've been used to, huh?"

TT slumped a little, biting his lower lip, "Uh, y-yeah."

"Don't worry 'bout it TT," Sonic traced his bruise and subtly winced, "I got your back."

Shadow wanted to know more. He interjected into their conversation, "Faker," the green-eyed male turned his head the addressor's way, raising a curious brow. Shadow continued, "What do you think of him?" The striped hedgehog knew how he felt about the other angry speedster, and he could take an accurate guess to how TT felt about him, but with Sonic, he didn't know. The relationship between the twins was filled with friction, and this was the first time (at least, that Shadow knew of) that Sonic hadn't tried to actively fix it. Not yet, anyway.

Sonic pursed his lips before grinning, "I think that you must've eaten somethin' absolutely _rotten_ that night you dreamt of me like that, Shads. Because sheesh! Talk about a bad egg! Wh-" the azure hero then trailed off, looking somewhere past Shadow now. The Ultimate Lifeform took in his rival's questioning gaze before turning around and seeing something in the distance. The thing was flying speedily in the direction they were going in, but then it veered off course a bit, slowly increasing the distance between the trio and the mystery object.

 _What is that?_ Shadow mentally asked, _A rocket of some sort? A missile? Wait a moment…_ He narrowed his eyes, and saw…legs attached to it. The object was also blue…and carrying something?

There was a gasp behind him. Shadow peered over his shoulder to see Sonic's emerald orbs flash. They locked with questioning rubies, "Egghead's been busier than we thought! Looks like he's got Metal Sonic back online. Guess that he hadn't learned from last time!" Sonic sat up straighter in his seat, his grin melting into an adrenaline-filled smirk, "I say we follow 'im!"

"I do as well," Shadow nearly growled out, knowing that following Metal would eventually lead them to the doctor, and in turn, (hopefully) Espio. He turned to the piloting fox, who was looking nervous, glancing between Sonic, Shadow, and the robot in the distance. The Ultimate Lifeform grunted out, "Follow him, and make sure not to lose him."

TT hesitated, either from nerves about pushing the Tornado possibly to its limits or from fright at the inevitable fight on the horizon, "B-But…" the fox gulped audibly. His namesakes twitched in anxiety, but the kit nodded anyway, "O-Okay…"

The yellow Mobian maneuvered the aircraft so that they eventually ended up directly behind the flying mech. The plane's speed remained stable; they didn't want to get too close to Metal and be found.

"W-Who is…M-Metal Sonic?" TT threw the question out there for either of the two hedgehogs to answer.

Sonic was right on it, scratching his nose, "No one special, just a bucket of bolts that happens to look like me." The fox seemed to accept that answer, monitoring the dashboard, and Shadow resisted from rolling his eyes. _If he only looked like Faker, then he wouldn't be much of a threat._ He didn't comment aloud however, just glaring at the mech way in front of them. Shadow was more than ready to confront anyone he had to at whatever rabbit hole Eggman had built.

Which was why he was moderately surprised when they ended up at Angel Island.

But that shock was short-lived when Shadow thought about exactly _what_ was on said floating landmass. The Ultimate Lifeform barely waited for the Tornado to fully land before he jumped down from the wing and skated toward the center of the isle. He vaguely heard Sonic tell TT to wait for them to come back, and then rapid footsteps sounded from beside him. Shadow glanced over to the blue Mobian, and Sonic gave him his signature grin, "It's time to find us a bot, Shads! Let's just hope Knucklehead can hold out 'til he gets some back-up!"

"He should," Shadow clipped back, weaving through the trees, "He's durable enough." He then got rid of any chance for Sonic to respond when he significantly sped up, wanting to get to that bot before the Master Emerald was taken. Anything catastrophic could happen if it was. He had experience.

Sonic kept in step pretty easily, dodging plants and ducking under branches. It wasn't long before they broke the tree-line and were looking right at the towering concrete shrine. "Knuckles!" Sonic gasped beside him, running over to the limp body of his echidna friend. Shadow, who was staring at the top of the massive structure, didn't tear his gaze away. His black quills began to bristle, and a guttural growl emitted from his throat.

Sonic, hearing this, turning toward him before following his glare up. The blue hedgehog then frowned, fists clenching at his side, "Your Espio?"

His query was highly unnecessary, but Shadow answered anyway, "Unfortunately," his voice was seeping poison.

Metal Sonic was floating at the top, adjusting the Master Emerald in his grip. But the mech wasn't who the duo were sending their animosity. The damned chameleon was there as well, his singular working eye slowly sliding from the robot and down to where the rodents were.

Shadow didn't give him time to react.

"Chaos Control."

Using the ME's energy, the Ultimate Lifeform was in between the reptile and the blue bot in less than a second. With a menacing snarl, Shadow roundhouse kicked the giant gem out of Metal's arms before whirling around and punching a caught-off-guard Espio right in the face, not holding back.

Shadow reveled in the other's pained shout as he flew off the pinnacle. The hedgehog was ready to go after him, but there was a crushing grip on his shoulder. He glanced back to meet dangerous glowing red orbs, "You will not-" the mech was then cut off when he was suddenly smashed into, Sonic's spin dash separating Metal and the black Mobian.

The bot tumbled for a moment before righting himself, giving all of his attention to the Faker, who was smirking. Sonic cracked his knuckles, getting into a fighting stance, "Your opponent is _me_ , Metal!" he glanced over to Shadow, smirk waning a bit, "Imma let you handle him."

The striped one just grunted, turning back around and seeing Espio land on the steps that were half-way down the structure. Shadow bared his teeth when the other struggled to get back up. He teleported down and wrenched the chameleon off the ground, fist grasping the loose skin of his chest to pull him up. Shadow scowled at the reptile now face-to-face with him after giving the other's broken arm a fleeting glance.

The venom leaking from his words could have killed an elephant, " _Where_ is _she?_ "

Espio wrapped a hand around his arm, trying and failing to push away, before infuriatingly responding to his question with a question. An amber iris was swirling with hostility, and a scowl marred his face as well, "How are you _alive?_ I _killed_ you."

Shadow narrowed his eyes, hearing fighting going on above them, before growling and punching Espio in the face once more. He moved his hand to wrap his fingers around the chameleon's neck, slowly squeezing, "I'm going to ask _one_ more time," the hedgehog took in Espio's pained expression. Some defiance was still present however, " _Where is she?"_ he yelled.

The reptile was scratching at his arm now, coughing. That enraging smirk never went away, "Y-You wouldn't take advantage of someone who's hurt, would you?" Shadow's only response to that was increased pressure on the other's trachea. Espio began to wheeze, chest heaving, "Y-You kill me; you k-kill him."

That made Shadow pause. His brow furrowed, "Explain," he barked out. He absolutely hated how smug the slimy chameleon looked. Espio bobbed his head, gesturing to something behind him. Shadow glanced back only to inwardly curse when he was greeted with the sight of Metal Sonic holding his fleshy counterpart by the neck as well. One single twist and it would snap. Sonic was laughing nervously in the hold, and Shadow shot him a heated glare. _Dammit hedgehog…_

"You do not even have to kill him for me to snap my irritating copy's neck," Metal droned out, "The only reason I haven't done it yet is because seeing him suffer first would be mildly entertaining."

"Ya think so?" Sonic attempted to pry open the metallic fingers, but it was futile, "Because I think my death would be a real downer!"

"Shut up," Metal shook him, and Sonic yelped.

A raspy laugh escaped Espio's throat, "It's strange how you've tamed him," he commented, and Shadow tilted his head a bit in confusion, "Considering that he would be damning the world and everyone around him by now." It became clear in Shadow's mind. Espio didn't know that he was in a different world. He thought that the Sonic here was the same one from before, "But no matter," the reptile resumed, the hedgehog's tight grip making him cough a bit, "L-Let go, or you'll see _another_ death really soon."

Shadow saw red, but he didn't act on his urge to tear the other apart. Instead, he pointed his unoccupied arm at Metal and sent a Chaos Spear his way. The bot's systems went haywire; Shadow threw Espio to the ground and kicked him in his covered eye, teleported over to Sonic, gripped his quills, Chaos Controlled over to the Master Emerald, touched it, transported over to the unconscious Knuckles, got close to him, and finally they all ended up back at the Tornado. That all happened in under five seconds.

"Whoa, my head…" Sonic leaned against the aircraft, waiting for his vision to stop spinning.

Shadow let out a shaky sigh, keeping his anger under control. Blazing reds glared daggers at the hero, "What _happened_ Faker?" out of the corner of his eye, Shadow saw TT jump out of the cockpit, looking over at them in worry before finally focusing on the unmoving echidna. The striped hedgehog gritted his teeth, "How in the _hell_ did you get caught?"

The speedster rubbed the back of his neck, "Uh…he got lucky this time?" Shadow's expression hardened, and Sonic held his hands up, "Look, I'm _sorry_ alright? I'm mad too! He just…I guess that he's got a few new tricks up his sleeve!" The cobalt hedgie ran his fingers through his quills, "I'll know what to expect next time though!" he gave a thumbs up, and Shadow looked away.

He gazed at the Master Emerald that was currently on its side. He then peered over his shoulder, thinking. The striped hedgehog didn't know if the duo would come after them to try to take the ME again. Metal might've followed them if Shadow had kept hold of Espio (it was _really_ temping to), but he had left him hopefully unconscious back there. Shadow didn't want to take the chance. If Espio hadn't returned to wherever he came from, Cream would be in serious danger. (He didn't want to humor the thought that because the duo had failed to get the Master Emerald, Cream could be in trouble anyway.)

TT took a step towards him, playing with his namesakes, "W-What happened?"

Shadow didn't respond for a moment, still listening for the sound of boosters. When none came, he touched the Master Emerald and began to slowly heal himself of the wounds he had, feeling complete for the first time since the Chaos emeralds shut down.

With chaotic energy flowing throughout his body, Shadow responded, "Turns out that Espio was with Metal Sonic," TT's body went rigid, and terrified sapphires scanned the area around them. Shadow took a second to listen, but again, there was nothing, "Faker and the robot fought while I dealt with Espio, or _tried_ to," he emphasized, sending a chuckling Sonic a dry look, "Then there were threats, and I had no choice but to come here with the emerald."

The fox, after searching around for any movement, stared in slight awe as wounds began to disappear from Shadow's body, "D-Did Eggman build M-Metal Sonic?"

"You hit it right on the nose!" Sonic pipped up, "So that means that Ol' Eggy and Espio's got a little buddy-buddy system goin' on right now."

Shadow nodded, "And that Cream's most likely somewhere with the doctor," _Which is the lesser of two evils_ , he mentally added, stepping away from the ME when he felt like he was well enough again. That was until the Faker grinned and hopped forward beside the gem, gesturing to his abdomen. Shadow glared.

Sonic rolled his eyes, "Aw come on Shads! I know I could maybe do it by myself, but you're _way_ better at it, and I don't feel like dealing with anythin' that could go wrong." Shadow's glare intensified, but he touched the purple area anyway. Again, he was doing this because he knew he wouldn't hear the end of it if he didn't.

TT watched the bruise slowly dissipate until it was gone, and then he turned his attention to the echidna on the ground, "W-Why is he like that?"

Shadow shrugged, crossing his arms, "My best guess is that Espio snuck up on him, and Knuckles fell down the flight of stairs."

Sonic stifled a laugh, "If under different circumstances, I _totally_ would've wanted to see that!"

TT cocked his head, befuddled, "Y-You would w-want to see him fall down the s-stairs?"

The hero was suddenly bashful, "That did sound kinda bad, didn't it?" he went over and draped an arm around the kit's shoulder's. The wince was unnoticeable if one wasn't looking for it, "It's just the relationship me and Knux have. I bet he'd _love_ to see me trip and fall into a pool or somethin'."

Shadow humphed, "Anybody would like to see that, Faker."

"Oh ha ha," Sonic mocked before going over and throwing Knuckles over his shoulder. The azure hedgie approached the airplane and dumped the guardian unceremoniously into the second seat. Sonic then picked up the Master Emerald with a grunt and struggled (Shadow could've helped, but the sight of the Faker's wobbling legs was too much to pass up) to place it in the same seat where it wouldn't make the drooling occupant uncomfortable. When he was done, Sonic dusted his hands together before putting them on his hips, "So where are we gonna drop off the rock? It's gotta be a place where it won't be found," he paused, "or just really hard to get to."

Shadow began thinking. They were lucky enough that Angel Island was over the ocean right now, so taking the Master away shouldn't harm anything. Knuckles might be miffed that they were taking his charge away, but his feelings didn't matter. Espio could not get his hands on this. They could just hide the ME somewhere underground, but Shadow didn't doubt at all that Eggman had a tracker. So the location wasn't what he needed to focus on. Protection was. And the more it had, the better.

…So where…?

A lightbulb went off in Shadow's head. They needed to talk to Rouge. She could manipulate heaps better than the Ultimate Lifeform could.

The red and black Mobian didn't answer Sonic at first, strolling over to the Tornado and jumping up on its wing. He felt the perplexed gazes on him. He addressed them, eyeing their surroundings again, "I'll tell you later once we're well way from the island. We never know who's listening," Shadow said. He didn't hear or see anything, sure, but Espio was a sneaky little shit. Better safe than sorry.

Sonic shrugged before following the striped one's lead, crouching on the other wing, "Yeah, don't want them finding out already!" he smiled down at the fox, "Let's go TT! Start the bad boy up!" The cub nodded before hovering into the cockpit, eventually steering the Tornado into the air.

As they flew away, Shadow watched as the floating isle began to fall. It fell faster and faster until it made hard contact with the water. The enormous waves were the last thing Shadow paid attention to before he faced forward and thought of what was to come.

* * *

Sonic scowled as he marched his way to the mouth of the alleyway, holding his side as he did so. Stupid psychotic bitches. After he let himself out of the hospital, he had stayed in the city just…walking around and lurking out of sight. He observed the citizens here. They seemed the same, but he knew as soon as he showed himself, the illusion would shatter. He had been alone to his thoughts in this alley until those two lunatics showed up.

The banshee with the hammer and the bat-girl had to be from this world. It was _clearly_ obvious with the latter (or bat-face must've gotten some intense work done), and Sonic figured that the pink one was too because of how she acted. _Dammit,_ the blue hedgie mentally hissed as he rubbed his throbbing side, _What in the hell did I even do? Had they lived in an effing G-rated movie all of their lives?_

Sonic peeked his head around the corner of the building, and narrowed his eyes at the horde of robots stomping their way through the Square, sending everyone and their mother into a frenzy. A growl tore through his throat. His day was getting shat on left and right.

The speedster was about to step out to thin the metallic crowd, but then something made him stop. Sonic blinked, thinking about this situation. This wasn't his home. This wasn't his city, not his people. Not his territory. Technically…this wasn't his battle to fight. Yeah, this was Station Square, and it looked the same, but it felt different. It wasn't his job to protect it.

Sonic's muscles relaxed a little bit.

The horde wasn't his problem; it was someone else's.

"Are you just going to _stand_ there?" hearing the feminine voice, Sonic glanced back to see the bat glaring at him with her hands on her hips, radiating sass. She gestured to the incoming mob, "Or are you going to do something?"

The speedster glared back at her with ten times the intensity, enough to make her waver for a millisecond. He took a heated step towards her, "What in the hell is your freakin' problem with me? Huh? I met you not five minutes ago! You don't know _anything_ about me!"

Bat-girl (what was her stupid name? Rouge?) lifted her chin higher, over her intimidated spell, "More than you know, Sonic."

The blue one's scowl deepened, "And exactly _what_ do you mean by that, bitch?" Movement at his left caught his eye, and he barely sidestepped a heavy swing of that red hammer. Sonic snarled at Amy, "Are you fucking crazy?!"

"No!" the pinkette replied, and Sonic's ears flattened themselves against his head at the screech. She had a vice-like grip on her weapon, more than ready to swing it again, "But you are! _Whoever_ you may be! Because you aren't Sonic!"

The blue hero deadpanned before focusing on Rouge, right eye twitching. This bat was a hundred times more annoying than the one he knew, "You haven't _told_ her yet?! Because apparently you know!" he exploded, fists clenched.

"I haven't gotten the chance to tell her!" the bat responded, her voice like a whip. She then calmed herself down, knowing that she was getting worked up. But how could she not? She could see why Shadow had been so fed up with this Sonic. Rouge took a deep breath and turned to Amy, who had lowered her hammer some in confusion, "Amy, you're right, this _isn't_ Sonic. Well, not technically at least."

"Not technically?" Amy repeated, flipping her weapon once before placing the head on the ground and leaning on the handle, "What do you mean by that?"

"He is _a_ Sonic," Rouge explained, "He's from a different world hon."

Amy's eyes widened, giving the blue hedgehog a once-over, "A different world?!"

Before anyone could respond to that, another explosion went off. It was closer than the ones before it. A tinge of worry etched into Rouge's features, "We'll talk about it later Pinky, first, we have to deal with these robots," she then looked over at Sonic, "Back to my question before, are you going to help or not?"

He folded his arms against his chest and bared his teeth at her. He didn't owe her, the banshee, or _anyone_ in the city anything. Those two could go fight and risk their Chaos-damned lives. He didn't care. They could do that while he watched from the…sidelines…

" _Are the rabbits from my world…"_

 _Stripes nodded, "Espio's robots got to them."_

Sonic pictured a pink and a white body lifeless in the middle of the street, and something stirred deep within him.

…He _did_ care. No one else was going to die because of him. Not ever. Twice was more than enough.

And Stripes better be kissing his ass when he saw him again.

Sonic sharply turned away from them, about to take off, "This is _my_ fight. Stay out of it," he ordered.

"Oh _no,_ " Rouge opposed, and he was ready to scream in frustration, "That's not how it works around here. _Everyone_ does their part," she fluttered her wings and took flight, "And you better get used to it," Sonic ground his teeth together as she flew by him and into the fray. _That little…_

"Yeah!" Amy echoed, and he focused his green irises on her. Her hammer was placed on her shoulder, and there was a bright grin on her face. "I don't know what exactly is going on, but if what Rouge said is right, then you have a lot to learn about our world!" she was about to run off, but she turned back to him, "And um, a little advice, if you lost that scowl, you'd be _way_ cuter," then she went on, waving her weapon around.

Sonic didn't know how to respond to that.

So, he just pretended that her last sentence hadn't been said and sped out into the light, spin dashing all of the robotic pests in range. While he was doing that, he kept a close eye out on the other two. Rouge was dive-bombing the mechs, kicking holes in them like she did this on the daily. Maybe she did. Amy was confident as she took on the wave, her weapon holding strong as she batted the robots away. She even used the hammer as a projectile only to…materialize another?

Sonic just humphed before giving his full attention to the buckets of bolts he was facing. He was twisting and turning to dodge any bullets, curving into a ball to pierce the hulls of as many adversaries as he could. Showers of sparks decorated the air as they fell by the numbers, nothing but debris when they met the ground. He hadn't gotten hit yet, but his body still hurt like a motherfucker. Especially his face and his side. Those spin dashes and limber movements weren't helping the state of his body one bit. But he'd been through worse. He sucked it up and kept moving.

" _Ahh!_ " At that yell, Sonic whipped his head in the direction of it, seeing Rouge bounce against the ground, holding her face. It looked like she had taken a helluva punch. He was about to zip over there to tear apart whatever robot responsible, but Amy got there faster, swinging like someone off their rocker. She bided the bat enough time to get up and ready herself again. The two dispersed once more, taking care of the thinning crowd.

Then, the blue Mobian was the one shouting in agony when a robot got one good hit on his already abused side when he was distracted. Sonic rolled once before crouching, holding where he was hit. " _Shit,_ " he panted out, trembling from the unbearable pain. _If only that banshee kept her weapons to herself…!_ Sonic shakily stood back up and launched himself at the robot, cutting clean through the mech's body. The hedgehog then uncurled himself when he landed on the asphalt again, wobbling a bit while trying to regain his balance.

Letting out a harsh puff of air, Sonic scanned the area for more bots to turn into scrap metal when he realized that the only one left just had its head taken straight off by a swift kick. Rouge lowered herself to the ground with a self-satisfied smirk on her face, and Amy bounded up to her, smiling in victory. Sonic just scoffed, rubbing his side once more. He was going to be bruised for at least a week because of that pink-haired maniac.

"Oh ho ho!" The trio froze at that boisterous voice coming from overhead, "Do you think that you're finished? Because you've thought wrong!" Three pairs of eyes drifted up into the sky, seeing a very recognizable man in his hovering craft. He was laughing and stroking his mustache. Sonic's expression immediately morphed into a menacing scowl. "That was only level one!" Eggman boasted, and Sonic deemed that this doctor was no different from his own, "But now, who has time for any of those in between and bothersome middle levels? Let's just bypass those and go straight to the final boss!"

Rouge and Amy were glancing at each other in various degrees of concern, and Sonic was ready to tear this man's arm off just to shut him up.

"Omega, will you show yourself please!"

At that name, the girls gasped, and Sonic felt hatred flood his system. The red and black robot flew to Eggman's side, and the bandages around the hero's chest were instantly uncomfortable. Those glowing crimson orbs were trained on the females. Sonic noticed the robot's imperfections, but that didn't matter at all. He felt the energy circulating throughout the mech, and he knew that this wasn't going to be as easy as the horde before.

Omega's only working arm changed into a machine gun, "YOU TWO. I WILL FINISH WHAT I STARTED. PREPARE TO MEET YOUR END."

 _Not if I can help it,_ Sonic mentally growled before zooming in front of the pair, "Get _out_ of here," he commanded the ones behind him, "I have business with him, and your asses _will not_ get in my way."

Rouge hesitated, knowing that this Omega was no regular opponent, but then remembered that Sonic actually had a score to settle. She would honor his (rather foully worded) wishes for now, but if she saw things going downhill, she was going to jump in. Rouge grabbed a resistant Amy's arm and pulled her to the side, telling her that they should stay out of it this time. Amy quieted and nodded.

"Oh?" Eggman peered over the side of his dashboard with a raised brow, having heard what Sonic said. He got a good look at the walking pincushion, seeing those enraged emerald eyes flash dangerously in the sun. _Hm…that's new…_ the doctor mused before shouting, "What's the matter with you, hedgehog? Woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" he laughed at his own joke.

"Enjoy your jokes dipshit, because I'm coming after _you_ next."

Eggman cut his guffaws off, severely perplexed now. _Was_ that Sonic the hedgehog down there? He swore that he wasn't. The scientist lowered his hovercraft a bit (but not too much) to examine the rodent. He was bruised, and there were bandages all around his body. There were no cocky grins or (questionable) witty comebacks. Was that actually Shadow painted blue?

The doctor shook his head. It didn't matter how the rodent was behaving. He just needed to buy time. Eggman pointed down at the azure hedgehog, "Omega! Take care of him!"

There was a pause, "DO YOU MEAN ATTACK HIM?"

Eggman sighed, " _Yes_ , of course that's what I meant!"

"YOU SHOULD HAVE SAID THAT THE FIRST TIME TO AVOID THIS POINTLESS CONVERSATION."

The rotund man brought a fist down, "Just attack him!"

Omega morphed his arm into a flamethrower, lowering himself down to the ground. Eggman saw the irritating rodent get into a fighting stance. The robot spoke, "IT IS YOU AGAIN. YOU ARE NOT DEAD. HOW UNFORTUNATE. BUT NO MATTER, YOU WILL DIE TODAY."

"As if, bastard," Sonic snarled, this being the first time the doctor had seen him do that, "This is the last time _you'll_ be seeing the light of day!" With that, he sped forward, and Omega let loose his flames.

Eggman chuckled at the sight of his worst nemesis getting licked by the fire, wincing in pain because of the heat. He laughed louder when Sonic spin dashed the mech only to bounce right back off, having done no damage. However, he was distracted from his entertainment when there was a buzz coming from the speaker attached to his controls.

"Ah!" he said to himself, "They must've taken the emerald already!" Eggman pressed a blue colored button and a monotonic voice came through:

" _Mission failed, doctor. Heading back to base."_

The scientist went wide-eyed, shock filling his system, "What?! What do you mean by 'failed'?"

" _Exactly what it means."_

Eggman wanted to tear something apart, "Darn it Metal! You _never_ do anything right! Why don't you have the Master Emerald?!"

" _We were on Angel Island; the guardian had been incapacitated by Espio. We didn't anticipate the appearance of the Ultimate Lifeform and my worthless copy."_

"So Shadow was there and," the doctor's brow frowned, gaze slowly drifting back to the one-sided fight below, "Sonic?"

" _Affirmative."_

"How long ago was your failure?"

" _One minute and sixteen seconds."_

 _There is no way that Sonic could've gotten here that fast!_ Eggman's mind was whirling. _But…it's also impossible for there to be a Sonic there and a Sonic here! Unless…_ The doctor pursed his lips, and rubbed his chin, staring down at the rodent below, who was suddenly an enigma. _This is interesting…_

"I'm coming back," Eggman responded to the robot on the other end, "And I have some information."

" _Information?"_

"Mhmm," was all that the man said before cutting the connection. He then raised his voice, shouting, "Omega! Time to go!"

Sonic, who was holding his burnt arm, frowned in confusion at the doctor's request. Omega looked back at the floating man before following orders. The two up in the sky were about to take off, and Sonic was one second from trailing after them, but then Eggman called something back that made him hesitate, "If you follow us, she dies!"

 _She?_ Sonic thought, _Who in the hell is…_ His breath caught in his throat. Omega was Espio's robot, and that chameleon had taken this place's Cream. Eggman was talking about her.

Dammit, dammit, dammit!

Sonic watched painfully as they flew away, disappearing over the buildings, while he stood there, feet planted to the ground. Feeling helpless.

"Who is he talking about Rouge?" he heard Amy ask, and the bat sighed. Rouge explained all that happened, and by the end of it, the pinkette was a sobbing mess on the ground. Apparently the bunny was her best friend. Sonic wasn't surprised. "But _why?!_ " the girl cried, "Why Cream? Why _Cheese_? Why…" she sobbed some more, and the bat held her shoulder to comfort. Rouge glanced over at him, and Sonic pointedly turned his head.

They were positioned like that for a while until Sonic heard footsteps coming his way. Amy was approaching him, wiping away her tears. She eyed his wounds as she came closer, Rouge a couple steps behind her. Amy gasped at seeing the intensity of his burns. She reached for them, "Oh my gosh…Let me see…"

Sonic jerked away from her, frowning. He felt the bat's disapproving stare, but he couldn't care less, "I don't need any of your damn help!"

Amy glared as best as she could, "Why are you acting like that? I just wanted to-"

"Well, _don't,_ " Sonic snapped.

A hammer was suddenly in her grip, and he resisted the urge to take a step back. The pinkette was either ready to cry again, or ready to shout in anger, "I just want to help! But you…" she sniffed and turned her back to him, sobbing into Rouge's shoulder. Said bat looked a tad uncomfortable, but she let it happen, "I want my Sonic here…" Amy hiccupped, "B-Because you're so mean!"

The blue hedgehog scoffed and started to walk off, wanting to be somewhere, _anywhere_ else. Preferably a place where he could get fixed up…again.

"Hey guys!"

Sonic perked up at the voice, and the girls did as well. The trio turned to see a flying fox headed their way, a wrench in his hand. The kit was waving at them, _all_ of them. Also, the hero couldn't help but notice the group following the cub, seeing familiar faces. But Sonic just zeroed in on one. A pink hedgehog.

He inwardly groaned.

Now he had to deal with _two_ of them.

* * *

 **Next chapter…getting to know one another!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer- I don't own.**

 **A/N- Sorry for the late update guys! I'll do better!**

 **Chapter 17- One plus one equals…**

When Tails arrived in Station Square, he expected to see robots running amok all throughout the city. So, he was more than a little surprised when he stumbled across what could be called a mechanical graveyard. The kit's tails were swishing rapidly behind him, keeping him airborne as he drifted farther into the Square, seeing all of the destroyed bodies of what used to be robots.

Most of the broken mechs had gaping holes in the middle of them; however, there were a couple with sizable dents and some with their heads knocked clean off. Tails' brow furrowed as he crouched down beside a bot with its artificial guts spilling out of it, recognizing that the attack dealt was none other than a spin dash. The cub had seen the aftermath of that move so many times that it wasn't difficult to place.

So yes, sharp quills moving at an extreme velocity did this, but Sonic and Shadow weren't around…or weren't supposed to be at least. Maybe they caught wind of robots invading the city and came back? It wasn't that farfetched.

"Guess someone did our job for us!" Hearing Amy's voice, Tails stood back up and turned to see her nudging a dismembered arm with the metal bat he gave her. The pinkette then leaned on the sporty weapon, surveying the area before locking gazes with the kit, "And fast too! It didn't take us that long to get here, did it?"

"Nope," Tails responded, his sapphire orbs switching over to Knuckles. An amused grin appeared on the fox's muzzle; he couldn't tell if the echidna was either exasperated or glad that he didn't have to fight. Or just exhaust himself at all. "We got here pretty quick, but whoever did this was much quicker," Tails began to scan for either of the supersonic hedgehogs, who had to be around somewhere, "Like sonicboom fast."

There was a quiet pause as the remainder of the group let that sink in.

Charmy dropped the robot head he was poking with his workbench hammer before buzzing over to Tails, radiating cheer, "Wait! Do you mean that Shadow did this? Is he here!? We gotta find him!"

The kit smiled, "He should still be in the city. All of this, er…" Tails eyed the mess around them, "destruction should led us to him! Or Sonic for that matter."

Vector humphed, kicking a wayward hand a couple feet. He twirled his shears once, "If a Sonic did this, hopefully it's yours because I REALLY don't feel like running into the one we know again."

Tails hadn't thought of that. It was completely possible that the one behind this wasn't from his world at all. The fox didn't know if he wanted to meet the other Sonic….sure, hearing how he acted was one thing, but actually _seeing_ it (and possibly being a target of it) was a totally different thing. If they did run into him, would the hedgehog know that Tails wasn't the one from his world? Would he even _care_? Tails doubted it, and that made him the slightest bit uncomfortable.

Knuckles must have seen his change in demeanor. The echidna covered his mouth as he yawned, "Don't worry about it, Tails. I...think that with all of us here, he won't try anything," all of the others, including Tails, detected that halfhearted attempt of hiding a lie. The cub was touched that the echidna tried to console him at least, "And plus, there's more of a chance of it being your Sonic or Shadow anyway."

Tails nodded, but had to still seem a bit unsure because Amy stepped closer to him, her comforting expression being a first for the kit. She had the role of a big sister down pat, and that made Tails want to reunite her with TT even more. He knew that she was going to hurt until she saw him again. The fox's ears twitched when she spoke, "Even if he's here, you're so brave, Tails!" Amy rubbed her arm bashfully, "Leading us all here under the threat of danger…" she then smiled, and the fox figured that this had to be rare for her to be the follower. He had met his doppelganger, after all, "Sonic won't be able to get to you, I know it!"

Vector came over and patted him heavily on the shoulder, "You'll be fine kid! Just give him a good whack with that wrench of yours and he'll leave you alone!"

Knuckles rose a brow, "Do you believe the words coming out of your mouth right now?"

"No," the croc mumbled, gesturing to the concerned fox, "But I wanted him to!" Charmy, hovering in loose circles, giggled at that.

Tails gave out an awkward chuckle, stepping away and reducing the contact he had with the reptile. He rubbed the back of his neck, blue irises darting all over the place now, "Don't worry guys! I'm okay! If we run into him, I'll…just find a way to deal with him, alright?"

The doppelgangers all shared a look, and Knuckles eventually shrugged, "Alright," the red Mobian linked his hands behind his head and shuffled forward, stepping around the scattered parts, "Let's follow the robots and see where they take us."

Tails agreed with him, whirling his furry appendages around and taking flight. His wrench was gripped tightly in his hands; he took a deep breath to get his muscles to relax. He didn't know why he was so worked up. He was just possibly going to deal with a bully with bad history, that's all. He knew that while the ones behind him maybe couldn't prevent all harassment, they would try their hardest to. They knew their Sonic (somewhat). Maybe they knew how to blow out any lit fuses…?

But then again, he could be worrying for nothing because for all he knew, Shadow or his Sonic could be at the end of this.

They marched on for another minute or so, Tails' mind whirling despite how much he tried to calm himself. He was sweeping the city with his gaze, watching as citizens start to peek out from their hiding places, but still too frightened to remove themselves from their safe spaces yet. That was good, because while the fox was looking for any hedgehogs, he was also looking out for any stragglers. Better safe than sorry.

After a little while of seeing no signs of any speedy hedgehogs, Tails began to believe that maybe they had left…for some reason and neglected to fill the kit in on anything. Sonic wouldn't do that, Shadow probably, but not Sonic. Those two hedgehogs were part of a group, and the blue blur wouldn't have let them leave. Gears were turning in Tails' brain. So maybe it wasn't either of them…

Before he could think more on it, figures came into view that were a distance away, standing in the middle of the street. Tails saw blue, white, and pink forms, and a smile instantly spread across his face. The other Sonic wouldn't hang out with this dimension's Amy and Rouge (that outline _looked_ curvy enough; Tails assumed it was her) right?

The fox waved, "Hey guys!" He picked up speed and the pitter-patter of footsteps behind him did also. It wasn't until the trio looked his way that he realized that something was wrong. Amy's eyes were red and puffy, and she had apparently had been crying on Rouge's shoulder. Said bat was rubbing off the wetness as she glanced in his direction. Sonic…Sonic looked _horrible_. He had numerous burns and bruises on his body, multiple of the latter on his face. What exactly happened here?!

"Wait a second Tails." The kit peered over his shoulder to see Amy staring at her crying counterpart, eyeing her over. There was a flash of empathy before the pinkette shifted her gaze over to Sonic, green irises hardening, "I don't know if you can tell, but that jerk over there isn't your Sonic."

That made Tails pause, slowing down a bit, "He isn't?"

Knuckles shook his head, the ghost of a frown marring his features, "No, can't you tell by just looking at him?"

The kit grounded himself, tails swishing behind him. Blue orbs went over to search Sonic's face, and Tails was taken back at how much _hostility_ was being sent to him right now. That emerald eyed glare was so foreign to Tails, so much that his body just froze. He didn't know what to do. Sonic hadn't ever looked at him like that. Ever. Tails knew that this wasn't _his_ Sonic, but it still was a shock to the system.

"You okay kid?"

Vector's voice barely registered. Tails bobbed his head slowly, "Y-Yeah. It's just that-" the kit didn't get to finish his sentence, for he cut himself off with a pained cry when a fist smashed into his cheek, sending him sprawling. The fox heard shocked gasps as he flew, bouncing hard on the unforgiving asphalt. He barely had time to regain his bearings before the fur on his chest was grabbed, and suddenly, he was held off the ground.

Tails yelped when the grip tightened, and he slowly focused on the blue one scowling in his face. There was nothing but _malice_ in that heated stare; Tails hadn't felt this terrified in a long time. Hands trembling, he grasped the hedgehog's arm and started to kick the rodent's front, "L-Let go of me!"

Sonic growled low in his throat, and Tails regretted his decision of attacking, "You're more ballsy than your little twin, _freak,_ " the fox flinched like he'd been slapped. His yellow ears flattened themselves against his head. A nasty smirk made his gut drop. "But that won't change anything. Because of that other you, just the sight of your _face_ pisses me the fuck off. With that and with every shitty thing that has happened to me today, I'm mad as hell. I need to vent," Sonic got closer, and Tails wanted to disappear into the ground, "And _you're_ a good punching bag…"

Tails couldn't say anything. He was too scared, too _shocked_ , to get any words past his lips.

"Let go of him you jerk!"

The kit turned his head, along with Sonic, to see Amy sprinting their way, her metallic bat ready to swing. There was a prominent frown on her face, and she looked dangerous. When she got close enough, the pinkette swung only for the bat to get yanked out of her grip and thrown away. Sonic sneered at her, "Stop interfering _bitch_ , before I come after you next."

Amy stood her ground and glared at him, hands on her hips, "No! You need to be taught a lesson! You _can't_ just push people around all the time! Now LET GO OF HIM!" Tails blinked, a bit distracted from his current predicament. He had never seen Amy this angry at Sonic. Granted, these two were both alternate versions of the ones he knew, but Tails seriously never thought he'd see the day where Amy _hated_ Sonic.

The bruised speedster was going to make a scathing retort, but then he saw something speeding at him out of the corner of his eye. Tails saw it too, heart rate increasing. Did the other Amy not realize that she had aimed for him too?!

To both his relief and his disappointment, Sonic sidestepped the hurled piko piko hammer, them both watching as it crashed into the building behind them, causing a section of the wall to crumble. Sonic whirled his head around to scowl at the second pinkette, but then he was hit right in the face with another thrown red hammer. The hedgehog dropped Tails to the ground as he flipped head-over-heels, slamming into the pile of rubble hard, extra debris spilling over on top of him, hiding his body from view.

Tails slowly picked himself off the ground with the help of the nearest Amy, the fox and hedgehog looking over to the sniffling pinkette who had fire in her eyes and _another_ giant hammer to wield if she had to, "That's what you get for being a giant _meanie!_ " she yelled, wiping away any leftover tears on her cheeks.

"Whoa…." Charmy breathed out, glancing between the pile of debris and the piko-ed Amy, "That was awesome!" the bee flew over to her and hovered around her head, "You can _make_ hammers? Cool! And what's cooler is that you knocked Sonic out with it!" the bee did a front flip in the air, causing the one he was talking to smile a bit. Charmy then looked over toward the Amy he knew, who was leading a bruising Tails back to the group, "Can you do that Amy?"

The addressed furrowed her brow, "I…don't know. I haven't really tried," she focused on her doppelganger, and the two twins examined each other for a moment. Tails glanced in between the duo, not knowing what was going to happen next. They could either get along, or they could be like two north ends of a magnet, repelling at all costs.

Then they both smiled, Amy leaning her piko piko against her shoulder, her sadness becoming less apparent, "I can give you tips if you want!" then her face became bit more serious, "All you have to do is stay away from _my_ Sonic, got it?"

The other pinkette held up her hands and let out an amused scoff, "He's all yours! Blue isn't really my color."

"Good!" Amy chirped, "Then we can be friends!"

 _Well,_ Tails thought, _That went better than expected._ The kit then rubbed his stinging cheek, wincing at the pain, _At least something good came out of this…_

This dimension's Amy then drifted her gaze off of her mirror image and onto the others of the group, "So…all of you came from another place?"

"Yep," Knuckles responded, staring at the clouds.

The pinkette was a little surprised at how aloof the echidna looked – Tails couldn't blame her – but Vector spoke up before it could be addressed, "Yeah, all of us here 'cept Tails. Speaking of…" the croc turned towards the kit, staring at his nastily colored bruise, "That was one hell of a punch you took! Are you alright?"

Tails gave him, and everyone else, a faint smile, "I'm fine…Just didn't expect that, you know?"

Rouge, who had been staring at the pile of rubble, finally decided to join in on the conversation. She stepped closer to the loose circle the other Mobians made, standing beside the kit. Tails saw Amy and her friends give the bat a once-over. There were no outwardly reactions (except the slight pink tinge across Vector's face).

She gave them all a quick grin, and the blush darkened. Then she gave Tails her attention, "No one could've expected that hon," Rouge glanced back over to where Sonic was supposed to be, "He caught us off-guard too."

"So um…Rouge…right?" the albino agent rose a brow at Amy, who looked a bit unsure, "This is so weird…I'm not used to seeing the make-up, with the…" she gestured at a certain spot on the bat's body before shaking her head, "But anyway, so you two met up with the jerk earlier?"

"Yeah!" her twin pipped up, "He was a handful!"

Rouge rolled her eyes, "And that's putting it lightly," she then glanced over to Knuckles. He was lazily kicking around part of a thigh on the ground. She cocked her head a bit, "Shadow told me that you had some kind of history with Sonic, Red," the echidna met her gaze at that nickname, moderately surprised to hear it. Rouge went on, "He's always been like this?"

Knuckles gave a one-shouldered shrug before replying, "Pretty much." Rouge's lips turned down at the edges, and Tails believed that she wanted more of an answer than that. He was sure because he felt the same way. But they had to remember that this wasn't their Knuckles.

"Wait a minute," Vector held up his hand, not exactly making eye-contact with Rouge. Tails noticed, and the bat did too because an amused glint shone in her teal orbs. The croc cleared his throat, "Shadow?" he asked, "You know where he is right now?"

"Of course I do; he's technically my partner and all," that made Vector pause and Tails felt a little bad; they didn't know how word-wise the bat could be. Her lips twitched upwards, "He's with Sonic and TT on a plane somewhere."

"Going to find Espio right?" Charmy questioned.

Rouge nodded at him, looking confused to how they would know. She locked eyes with Tails, and he said, "I told them about their search for Eggman and Espio."

Before the bat could respond, Amy held her hammer up, eyes glossed over, "Espio…I swear when we find that evil chameleon, he's going to wish that he'd never messed with me and my friends!"

Her twin held up a hand, and Amy clapped it, "I hear you sister! He's going down!" they interlocked fingers and giggled, most likely imagining ways that Espio got what was coming to him.

"When are they comin' back again?" Vector asked, and Tails wasn't sure, but he thought the reptile was pouting.

"I'm don't know exactly," the kit played with one of his namesakes, "They should be back before nightfall; I think they wouldn't stay out there for too long." _Without giving me an update, at least._

Charmy, who had been surveying the damage around as they talked, spoke up, "So did you help with the robots? Or was it just Sonic?"

Rouge snorted, "He _tried_ to keep us out of it, but that wasn't going to work. We don't just stand-by, sugar. We help. His threats don't work on me. Also, I don't think he was going to act on anything after what he felt what Amy could do with her hammer," she added, and said hedgehog chuckled smugly.

The other pinkette smiled as well, "So you're the reason he had bruises everywhere?"

Amy shook her head, "Actually no! We found him like that. I think the only one I caused is the one on his side, not anywhere else."

"What happened to his face then? He didn't have them when we first ran into him earlier," Vector inquired, scratching his cheek.

"Who knows and who cares? He'll heal…" Knuckles commented, letting out a sigh. Rouge pursed her lips at his response.

"That's true, but speaking of Sonic," the croc began to look around the place, searching for someone, "I wonder where Penumbra is? We did tell him to get 'im."

Charmy perked up, "Oh yeah we did!" the bee started to spin on circles, darting everywhere, "Nummy's supposed to be with him! Where is he?"

Amy tilted her head in confusion, "Who's Penumbra?"

"He's Shadow's double," Rouge answered her, a bit perplexed herself, "Why would he be with Sonic though?"

"Because…alright, it's kinda of a long story," Vector tapped his chin, "But here's a shortened version. I ran into Charmy and Penumbra up in some snowy place in the mountains. Then we ran into some robot dog that gave me THIS," he turned around to show the scarring red bite marks, "Penumbra tried to fight him, but he ended up trapped in a cage inside a building we were nearby. We ran away and eventually bumped into Sonic and Mephy. Sonic was _supposed_ to go save him."

Rouge crossed her arms, thinking, "Well, the only way we can get an answer is if we ask him," she jabbed a thumb in the direction of the rubble, and the Mobians that had been around him the most made faces (sans Knuckles). "But first, did you say 'Mephy'? As in Mephiles?"

"MEPHILES?" one pink hedgehog shouted, "He's here?! But why? He's supposed to be dead! He's gonna-"

"Calm down Amy!" Amy said, and felt really weird doing it. She put her hands on the other's shoulders, "He's from our world! He's really nice!" she leaned away, "I know yours was _really_ bad, but Mephy wouldn't hurt a fly!"

Amy bit her lips warily, "If you say so…"

Rouge smirked, "And I'm sure that Shadow had scared any evil out of him if he had some," the bat then turned on her heel and strolled in the direction of the unseen speedster, "Now let's get some answers."

Tails followed her. He knew that he would be putting himself in danger again once the agent woke up the speedster, but he had to show this Sonic that he wasn't scared of him (nervous, yes, but scared? …Not at the moment). Maybe if Tails radiated confidence, Sonic wouldn't target him? He was hoping for that.

Rouge stood at the edge of the debris before flapping her wings to get a good angle. She then lowered herself, stuck her arm in, felt around for a bit, and rose out of the rubble, the arm of a barely conscious Sonic in her hands. The agent swooped down beside Tails and dropped the hedgehog on the ground, slapping him once to get him more awake. The sound was strangely satisfying to Tails' ears.

Sonic hissed in pain before gingerly rubbing the spot she made contact. He glared up hard at her, sent it Tails' way, and then returned it onto the bat, "Chaos-damned bitch," the hedgehog wobbled as he stood back up, shaking his head and blinking away the threat of going unconscious. "You _will_ pay-"

Rouge waved him off, "Yeah, revenge, whatever. You're lucky I didn't leave you buried under there," she folded her arms, and so did Sonic, the latter baring his teeth. The bat just grinned, "You're just wasting energy doing that with me. It's not going to work," the blue speedster frowned and narrowed his eyes, "That's better. Now I have a question for you: where's Penumbra?"

Sonic snorted, "How the hell should I know?"

"Vector said you went to find him," Tails bravely provided, resisting the urge to cower under that venomous stare, "and that he should be-"

"Should be, but he effing isn't," Sonic rudely interrupted him, "He wasn't there, so I left."

The fox frowned, a little angry, "Did you even look?"

"Of _course_ I looked, freak!" the hedgehog snapped, clenching his fists, "So _don't_ go assuming shit!"

"No need to get riled up," Rouge interjected, using a patronizing voice that made Sonic's quills bristle, "We were concerned, so we asked," the only response she got was a scornful scoff.

Tails took his focus off the hedgehog's face and examined his body, noticing the mild burns he had. He took a breath, "Those are pretty serious burns you have, if you want we can-"

"Worry about your- _fucking-_ self."

"But-"

"Shut _up_ before I decide to hit you again jackass!"

Wisely, Tails didn't say a word as Sonic ran off.

The agent beside him shrugged, "At least you tried hon."

"I guess…" Tails muttered. Yeah, he knew that he had just been decked in the face by that Sonic, but he couldn't help but worry about the hedgehog. It was ingrained into him to be concerned with all matters that dealt with the blue blur.

"So what did he say?"

Tails' and Rouge's heads turned to see Charmy hovering beside them, the rest of the group approaching from behind. The bat sighed, "Nothing much. Sonic said that he didn't find him."

"Didn't FIND him?" Vector threw his hands in the air, "What did he mean 'didn't find him'? Penumbra was trapped in a cage! BLEEDING! There was no way he could've gotten out, or have gone far if he did!"

"Wait," Tails' mind went back to when he was wondering inside a building, wary of any traps that might spring up. Then it focused on when TT had showed him that puddle of blood in the middle of the floor. Was that…Penumbra's blood? "I think…I think I saw where Penumbra was supposed to be!"

"What do you mean?" the bee prompted.

Tails explained, "Remember when I told you guys about me meeting TT, and all of us taking a trip to the mountains?" most of the group nodded while the other Amy and Rouge stood to the side, listening, "Well, I didn't really go into the details of it. We went because we thought Eggman was there. He wasn't, but that's not my point here. Sonic took care of the robo-dog, and we saw a puddle of blood by a gap in a wall! Maybe that was Penumbra's?"

Vector cupped his chin, "How early did you go?"

The kit shrugged, "Pretty early. We didn't see your Sonic there, if that's what you're going for."

"Man..." the croc sighed, "He must've disappeared not long after we left then!"

"Oh…" Charmy groaned, waving his arms, "He could be anywhere! Cold! Hungry! Starving!"

"Hungry and starving are the same things, Charmy," Knuckles corrected before crossing his arms, "But I wouldn't worry too much. He'll show up soon enough."

"Yeah!" Amy agreed, "We've all found each other! Who's to say that he won't either?"

"Penumbra…" the pinkette's doppelganger began, a wonder-filled expression on her face, "Is he anything like Shadow?"

"Well uh…" the other her started, trying to find the right words, "No?"

Rouge decided to help her out, "Let's just say that he's a bit on the wild side, hon," the bat smirked at the curious looks she received, "Shadow told me about him too."

"What all did he tell you?" Knuckles rose a lethargic brow, "Everything that happened?"

"Mhmm," Rouge hummed, taking a step closer to the echidna and pushing her forefinger against his chest. All Knuckles did was frown a little, and Tails was sure that the other ME guardian's face would be matching his fur right about now. Hearing a low huff, the kit glanced over to Vector. Okay, now the croc was definitely pouting. "Especially about you and how you neglect that precious gem of yours."

"Precious? I wouldn't call it that, but to each their own…" the red Mobian drawled out.

The bat grinned, removing her finger, "Maybe I could use you to convince your little twin to stop being so possessive. How about you and I go-"

"HOW ABOUT we back to the house and check on Vanilla yeah?" Vector interrupted, looking at Knuckles, "And you can take a nap! Ya love those right? Naps are great!"

The croc received odd looks all around except from Rouge – whose frown wasn't exactly subtle – and Knuckles – who seemed fine with the idea. "Sure. Might as well kill time until Shadow comes back."

"Well," the bat gave Knuckles his space back, flapping her wings to get airborne. Her expression wasn't easily readable, "While you all do that, I need to get back to 'work'," she flashed Tails a grin, "I wonder if I can go the whole day without the Commander noticing that none of the paperwork is getting done."

"Oh yeah! You do work for GUN!" dream-world Amy reminded herself, "Is it fun? Or do they just boss you around all the time?"

"It's got its perks," Rouge simply answered before she gave a wave and flew off in the direction of the base.

Everyone stared at her leaving for a moment, then Charmy let out a laugh, "She is _so_ different from Rogue! I can't wait for him to meet her! It's gonna be so funny!" Vector mumbled under his breath something that sounded suspiciously like 'She better not like _him_ too'.

Amy gasped, understanding the croc, "Yeah, she _better_ not!" she calmed herself down a little, her cheeks rosy as she glanced away from the stares, "Um. For reasons."

The other pinkette pursed her hips before smiling ear-to-ear. Hammer disappearing, she looped one arm around her twin's. She made the still blushing hedgehog follow her as the duo ran ahead of the group in the direction the home was. Once the pair were far enough away, they began giggling to one another.

Charmy cocked his head, "What was that about?"

"Who knows?" Vector let out a puff of air, beginning to trail after the pinkettes.

"Girls are troublesome," Knuckles sighed as he began to walk as well.

Tails didn't know what to think, besides that the other Amy had acted a lot like the one he knew when the subject of Sonic was brought up. The kit shook his head, sparing himself the trouble of trying to figure it out, and spun his namesakes behind himself. "Do you guys even have enough room in the buggy for one more?" he asked.

Vector waved him off, "We'll make room."

The flying kitsune nodded before looking ahead, wincing when his bruise throbbed.

 _Sonic isn't going to be happy when he sees this…_

* * *

"You should tell them, sweetie."

They had been going back and forth about this for a while now.

Mephiles was sitting on the couch beside the mother rabbit, staring down at the letter he had written to her, explaining all that he had done. She had read it, and her reaction was unexpected. She wasn't mad, maybe a little saddened, but not angry at all. It made sense though. Like he had deduced before, Vanilla didn't really have any connection to the Cream his actions had killed.

The older rabbit had just given the paper back to him before patting his shoulder and telling him that it wasn't all his fault, that he had tried to help, and that's all that mattered. Mephiles wished that he could believe it, but he couldn't. He was there, and he didn't stop the robot. Because of that, the rabbits were shot. It was his fault. Yes, he felt better about it now that he had told someone else, but that fact was still true.

Vanilla had also told him to tell everyone else. He couldn't though; he was positive that their reactions wouldn't be anywhere as pleasant as hers was. Vanilla kept insisting however, reiterating that Espio was the one to blame here, not him. The others would still be mad at that chameleon, not him.

No, they wouldn't.

Mephiles was the direct cause. He had threw away his weapon, and wasn't strong enough to save them. Watching as a powerless idiot was no worse than being the one who shot the gun.

The hedgehog's grip on the edges of the paper increased, and crinkles formed that warped the letters written there. Mephy shook his head and lowered it, imagining what could happen and was terrified of the pictures shown to him.

There was a sigh, "You have to. They deserve to know…"

 _I know they do,_ Mephiles thought as a comforting hand patted his shoulder, _But…_

There was a knock on the front door, and the striped hedgehog had a little panic attack. He frantically searched the living room before deciding to stuff the now balled up paper underneath the couch, deep enough under there that it wouldn't be found. The empathetic expression thrown his way wasn't acknowledged as he went toward the door.

He unlocked it and swung it open, revealing a smiling Tails. It was easy to tell that the fox wasn't used to seeing him yet, "Hey Mephiles. Uh…nothing happened here while we were gone right?" Mephy shook his head as he stepped to the side, letting the kit in.

The rest of the group flowed in after the yellow Mobian, and the striped hedgehog's eyes widened when two Amys strolled into the home. One of them gave him a friendly wave, while the other narrowed her eyes suspiciously, and Mephy had to resist taking a step back to get away from the heat of her glare. It was safe to say that she was the Amy from this world.

Mephiles softly closed the door, watching as that gaze swept off of him and focused on the rabbit on the couch. She practically launched herself at Vanilla, hugging the mother, and the mom was hugging her back. The room was quiet – sans the sniffles coming from the pair – as the others let the duo have their moment.

When they were done, the sniffling Amy sat in Mephiles' seat, and the other one sat beside her. That was fine, as long as the two didn't have the sudden urge to search under the sofa. The striped hedgehog settled himself down on the carpeted floor beside Knuckles who already looked like he was on his way to slumberland. Charmy plopped himself down on the shadow 'hog's head; he wasn't surprised anymore really. Tails had disappeared back into his garage, and Vector was back in the soft chair.

"I just feel _so_ bad for you! For Cream!" Amy held her head in her hands, "She's my best friend! And Cheese! I just…I just don't understand why!"

"No one does…" her mirror image consoled her, slumping in her seat, "No one knows what's going on in that chameleon's head…"

Vanilla folded her hands in her lap, "I'm just hoping for the best," she said, her smile cracking, "That she'll be back home soon…" the rabbit then changed the subject, and Mephiles suspected that she wasn't the type to let a heavy atmosphere smother for too long, "So, how do you like your other self, sweetie?"

Amy glanced at the one beside her and they both grinned, glad for the topic change, "She's almost just like me! Which is not really surprising," she chuckled, "I can see us being really good friends!"

"Same here!"

"Those two are gonna be inseparable, aren't they?" Vector questioned from behind Mephy. The hedgehog carefully turned his head and smiled, letting out an airy snicker. Those two would be, and if they were, then maybe there would be less of a chance of Mephiles being attacked by a specific one.

A snore sounded from beside the shadow Mobian and Charmy commented, "We've barely been here for five minutes!"

"Is he always like that?" An Amy questioned.

"Pretty much," Vector grunted out.

"I think the only way to keep him awake is to pay him," the second Amy deadpanned, "And I'm not even sure that'll work."

The conversation lulled then, and the attention of the room was shifted to the television that was playing the same movie the group had on before most of them left. As time went on, Mephiles kept feeling eyes on him, but he didn't know who they belonged to. Could have been Vanilla, or the Amy he was less familiar with, or both of them. He forced himself it ignore it. They all relaxed for a while.

Until there was another knock on the door.

All heads snapped in that direction. "Who the heck could that be?" Vector questioned.

"There's only one way to find out…" Knuckles yawned out, looking miffed that he'd been woken up.

"I'll get it!" One Amy skipped to the front door and yanked it open with a smile on her face.

It was (a less bruised, a less burned, and a less frown-y) Sonic.

There was a pregnant pause before Amy threw herself at him, arms outstretched. The bluer hedgehog seemingly wasn't ready, for he stumbled back a step when her body collided with his. The Amy sitting on the couch resisted turning away from the sight. She could _never_ see herself acting like that with any azure speedsters.

"Sonikku! You wouldn't believe what happened to me today! It was horrible!"

Sonic's mind was horribly confused as it focused on the girl crushing him, "Wha? Amy? What's going on? Why are you-" There was a rustling noise coming from inside his home, and he looked over her shoulders to see a full house. He let out a low whistle, gaze first locking on the _second_ pink hedgehog on the couch, then on the striped one on the floor, who subtly flinched.

"Wow, well isn't this a party?" he entered the building, prying Amy's fingers from around himself as he did so, "How come I wasn't invited?"

"Sonic!" the pinkette whined.

He smiled apologetically at her, removing her arms from his body (with some effort) and making her stand an arm's-length away, "Sorry Ames, got distracted." Emerald irises swept the room again until they were focused on the exit that was in the direction of the garage, "I'll be right back, 'kay? Gotta tell Tails that I'm here," he turned to the observing group and winked, "Then I can properly introduce myself!" There was a weak draft as he quickly paced off, and there was the sound of a door shutting.

Silence, then, "First impressions?" Knuckles muttered.

"He's a jerk!" Amy said, and the other female looked at her like she had just committed first-degree murder.

"He is _not_ a jerk!" she countered, "Don't ever call him that!"

"Did you _not_ see how he treated you? He peeled you off of him like an annoying scab!"

"You only saw him for a minute! Stop judging him!"

"I'm looking out for you!"

Mephiles looked back and forth between the two, thinking that they made too early of a call saying that those girls would be inseparable.

* * *

"You…saw Sonic as well?"

Espio could hardly believe his ears. The doctor had been confronted by Sonic. That…wasn't possible, because _he_ had seen that blue rodent on Angel Island. There was no way. But…Eggman was insisting that there were two of them, somehow, and Espio couldn't refute that.

Adjusting the ice pack that soothed the bruised parts of his cloth-covered eye socket, a single amber iris snapped over to Omega. The bot met his stare and nodded, "IT IS TRUE. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG WAS PRESENT."

"See? I have a witness!" Eggman was sitting in his rolling chair, fingers tapping the plastic arm of it, "And I cannot remember the last time that I have been this stumped!"

A mechanical scoff emitted from Metal Sonic, "I am sure you can, doctor," before the man could chastise him, the robot continued, "But anyway, there is no probable explanation for this. There should not be two worthless doubles running around."

"I agree, there shouldn't," Espio narrowed his eye, his voice becoming a near growl. This unfortunate information was complicating things. This was unpredicted and dangerous for his plans. "But there _is._ Why?"

Eggman leaned back in his seat, stroking his mustache, "Hmm…" A lightbulb went off in his head, and he spoke, "I believe that the copy of Shadow we have in there and this double of the blue rat are connected. There is no way that they aren't," suspicious eyes hidden by glasses drifted over to Espio, "And you personally know Penumbra…"

Before the chameleon could disprove any claims the doctor was going to make about him, a red light began to flash all throughout the lab. A loud alarm was going off, causing all of them to be at attention.

Eggman was the most frantic, "We have intruders! That alarm sounds when one of my doors leading out have been torn down!" the scientist glared at all of them, thrusting his arm to the side to point to the open hallway, "What are you waiting for?" Eggman was looking specifically at the chameleon, "Go find them, and don't let them get away!"

Espio inwardly scoffed, disliking being told what to do, but he dropped the ice back and ran out anyway. He went to the left while Metal flew to the right; Omega was on the reptile's tail. When the pair came to another fork in the hallway, Espio commanded his robot to go left, and he went the opposite direction. There were multiple entrances to the underground lab, and he was heading towards the one he and the other three had come through.

When he reached it, the reptile hesitated in surprise before getting closer and examining the door that was on the floor. It didn't look like it had been kicked in or anything, especially not spun into like he had expected it to be. It seemed like the metal just shrunk in on itself and crumpled to the ground.

 _Strange,_ he thought before believing that he should stop focusing on the what, and start figuring out the _who._

...But there was one small problem.

He couldn't move.

* * *

 **Next chapter…curiosity killed the cat!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer- No one belongs to me sadly…**

 **Chapter 18- Mistakes were made**

His head hurt.

Like a _lot_.

His throbbing skull was the first thing he felt as he slowly woke up. Chaos, it was like a hammer was trying to break its way out, determined to smash through in the most harmful way possible. What even happened? He couldn't remember. Freaking _ouch._ Okay, he just tried to, and the hammer turned into a battering ram. No more of that. If he figured out whoever did this to him however, he would make them feel twenty times worse. Maybe even thirty because he was _so_ ticked off that he was hurt, like what the hell? He was going to tear them apart! Or maybe not if it was an accident…and they actually rescued him…then he would thank them.

Chaos did his head hurt.

The second thing he felt was the warmth. The near _smothering_ warmth. He was toasty, sure, but why couldn't he move? He attempted to move a limb, but nothing happened. Was he wearing a straitjacket or something? Oh no…what if he was? What if he was institutionalized? What happened to Charmy? Oh Chaos where was the bee? Was he nearby? Or did they take him away? Whoever 'they' were…hm… Was that fire he was hearing? Then maybe he wasn't in a straitjacket; he was probably in a sleeping bag, camping somewhere. That's a better scenario. Probably.

Did he mention that his head was killing him?

"Hey Silver, you with us man?"

Was that…Rogue? What was he doing here? Wait a minute…Station Square… Espio… Cream… Shadow… Penumbra…Chaos Control!

Golden eyes flew open and the hedgehog sat up quickly, frantic yellows searching until they landed on the bat staring worriedly at him. "Rogue, what…" The psychic then glanced down at his bundled up body, thinking that being in a straitjacket was most similar to this. You could easily get out of a sleeping bag, this…the hedgehog wasn't so sure. Silver drifted his gaze to the fire flickering in front of him and back to the albino Mobian bundled up more loosely than he was, "What happened?" he then realized that they were encased in a snowy home, "And where are we?"

The concern present in those teal irises dissipated and Silver was given a lopsided smile, "Welcome back to the world of the livin', dude." Rogue shifted a little where he sat, and the psychic was given a good look at the bat's broken wing. Silver's immediate concern apparently wasn't missed by the other, "It's okay! It's okay, no need to get worked up. It's nothin' I can't handle."

"Nothing you can't handle?! You're _wing_ is broken!" Wanting to go over and examine the other, Silver struggled out of his cloth cocoon and hissed in pain when the harsh movement made his head throb. He paused at the bandages he felt that were wrapped around him. He locked gazes with Rogue, now extremely confused, "What happened to you? To me?"

Rogue blinked at him, cocking his head, "You….don't remember?"

Silver's gut dropped. What didn't he remember? Was it something important? Did someone _die?_ He began to hyperventilate, the heat surrounding him becoming slightly uncomfortable.

"H-Hey Silv! Calm down!" The bat – who was unfairly more mobile in his blanket – crawled over toward the heavily breathing hedgie. Silver focused on him, and slowly worked on bringing his respiration rate down. "There ya go. There's nothin' to worry about, bro. Nothing uh…important really happened," Rogue's grin shook a bit before solidifying, "'member Penumbra teleporting us away from Station Square?"

"Yeah…" Silver answered, recalling that clearly now.

"Well," the albino shivered a bit; the cold must be getting to him. Silver wasn't that cold though. Maybe because he had more fur? That must be it. "We…landed on some rocks after reappearin'. We both had a little rough landing," Rogue chuckled.

The psychic smiled, more than relieved that what he had forgotten wasn't that important. Silver then scoffed, "A little rough? I hit my head and you broke your wing. I say that the crash is offended that you called it that." Rogue barked out a quiet laugh, and Silver returned to trying to escape his blanket trap. After failing, he sent a pleading look the bat's way, "Can you help me get out of here? I'm hot."

Rogue snorted, "No, you're crazy. It's _freezing_! Okay yeah, it's warmer in here than out there, but _still_. I like to chill but this is insane." The psychic did nothing but roll his eyes and gave the other a pointed look, thinking that the bat was being a wuss. Despite his complaining, Rogue sighed and wiggled out of his blanket to get his hands free. It took a lot of twisting and turning and rolling, but Silver eventually got loose. Rogue quickly bundled himself back up, "There ya go."

"Thanks!" The white hedgie stood up and stretched, frowning when his headache made a reappearance. "Gah…" he breathed out, holding the bruise covered up with the wrappings.

"Are you alright bro? How's your head?"

Silver waved the bat on the ground off, "I'm fine…"

"Are you su-"

Anger bubbled up in his gut, "I said I'm _fine!_ " he snapped, and immediately felt horrible when Rogue winced at his harsh tone. The psychic let out a sigh, his expression morphing into an apologetic one, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry…I might not be a _hundred_ percent okay…"

Rogue nodded, "Yeah, didn't think so." Silver was immensely relieved that the bat didn't hate him for his outburst, "You were out for a couple hours. You had a concussion man."

"A concussion? Really? That's probably why I can't remember stuff…" Silver rubbed his injury some more before looking around the igloo they were in, seeing that it was a dainty little living space. "So where are we?"

Rogue shivered again, "Holoska."

"Holo-" Silver's eyes widened as he gaped, "Holoska?! We're in the _arctic_ right now?"

The bat chuckled, and his breath was visible, "Is that really surprising dude? It's _cold_ , despite what you're feeling."

Silver wouldn't admit it, but he was feeling the chilled temperature now, "That's just wonderful," he glanced around again before zeroing in on the exit of the small structure, "So where is everybody else? They're here too, right?"

Silence.

His heartrate skyrocketed as he focused on Rogue and saw that flicker of uncertainty on the bat's face. Silver had no idea what that meant, but he knew that it was nothing good, "R-Right?" he stuttered out, fearing the worst.

Rogue slowly shook his head, "We…got separated."

Silver was in the bat's face in a second, trembling hands on the flying Mobian's shoulders, "H-How separated?"

"The others can literally be anywhere, Silv."

The psychic took a deep breath and the shaking stopped. This was a serious situation. Charmy and Amy and Tails and the others could be roaming around lost. Silver looked at Rogue dead in his eyes, "Then we go find them." He stood up smoothly and strolled over to the opening. Golden irises peered over a white shoulder, a single brow raised, "You coming?"

Rogue was staring at him oddly for a moment before the look went away. The bat rose off the ground, the blanket dropping to his feet. His teeth chattered and he wrapped his arms around himself, "You sure man? Because we can stay a bit longer if your head-"

"I'm healthy enough to travel," Silver clipped, more than ready to get moving.

"But we're going to need your powers, and…" Rogue trailed off, gesturing to his broken wing. Silver understood. He was going to have to do the traveling for the both of them.

"Don't worry," Silver beamed, shocking the bat a bit. It was funny how much the other was underestimating him. "I'm not going to drop you!"

Rogue just blinked before letting out a snicker, "If you say so," he ambled closer to Silver, "But if I get buried in snow, just know to watch your back!"

The hedgehog didn't answer; he just snickered as he exited the igloo, shielding his eyes from the blinding early afternoon sun that reflected off the ever-present snow. Silver glanced around, noticing the native people conversing with others. Some kids were throwing snowballs at each other in the distance.

"Ah Rouge! And Sally too!"

Silver disregarded the deep voice until there was a nudge at his side. He glanced over at Rogue who was bobbing his head in the direction of the voice. It came from an older man wearing a heavy jacket; he was waving at the duo. Silver furrowed his brow, "Did he just call us-"

"Yeah, just ignore it," Rogue exasperatedly muttered.

The man stopped in front of the pair, smiling warmly, "So it seems that you two are about to hit the road, huh?"

"Yep," Rogue replied with a soft grin, " _Silver_ is feelin' good enough to go."

The human regarded the hedgie, examining him, and Silver suddenly felt self-conscious of his wound. "Are you sure lad? You must've gotten hit pretty hard."

The psychic pushed his forefingers together, avoiding eye contact, "Y-Yes sir…I-I'm fine…"

The man looked concerned, but Rogue placated him by saying, "Don't worry 'bout him. He's tougher than he looks." Silver frowned at the bat, wondering if he should be offended or not. The flying albino continued, "But um, about the village you talked about earlier that could fix my wing, what direction is it in again?"

"Directly south," the man answered, pointing in that direction as Silver looked over Rogue's broken appendage again. Yeah, maybe they should do something about that before it got any worse… "About twenty miles. You up for the journey?"

The bat gave the hedgehog a fleeting glance, grin widening, "You bet! We'll get there no problem. We should go though, cuz I want to get there as soon as possible," he gave a goodbye wave as he took a step away from the man, Silver copying his actions, "Thanks for the help, and say bye to Ursule for me!"

The guy waved back, "Will do Riley!"

"What is _up_ with him?" Silver asked as the man walked away from them.

Rogue shrugged, "His wife said that he wasn't good with names. That was a _huge_ understatement." The bat rubbed his arms as he turned to gaze at the open whiteness in the distance, facing the way the human pointed, "Let's get this show on the road then."

Silver frowned, looking over the shivering bat. Then he stared out at the winter wonder land, more in tune to the bandages wrapped around his head. He came to a decision that would cause less risk for the both of them. The hedgie turned to Rogue, gesturing to himself, "Come here."

The bat's lips twitched downwards, "What?"

"Come here," Silver repeated.

"Uh…Why bro?"

Figuring that this was going nowhere, Silver sighed before stepping in front of the other male and bringing him in for a hug, careful of the damaged wing. Rogue struggled, but the psychic held tight. "Stay still, would you?"

"What the hell are you doing?" Rogue yelled into his ear, "Let me go dude!"

Silver was getting annoyed again, "Shut up and just wrap your arms and legs around me."

Rogue went still. There was a pregnant pause before he said, "You sound completely serious about this, and that's what's terrifying me."

"You're overreacting," the hedgehog huffed, "I'm doing this so you, and I, can keep warm while I fly. And plus, it's easier for me to use my powers like this if we're together. Moving a slightly larger mass is better than moving two separate ones. And weren't you the one saying that you didn't want to be dropped?"

"I mean, yeah! But this is just…just…"

"Do you want to get your wing fixed or not?"

Nothing happened for the longest, but eventually arms wrapped around the hedgie's shoulders, and it took even longer for the legs to move. Silver shifted his weight to accommodate for the bat's.

"See?" the psychic lightly laughed, "This isn't so bad, is it?"

"I swear if you _breathe_ a word of this to _anyone_ dude-"

"Yeah yeah," Silver cut off the embarrassed growls as he floated into the air. He winced at the throbbing in his head, but he could endure it. It could've been worse. "Just hang on!"

Silver flew off and inwardly chuckled when the other's limbs unconsciously tightened around him.

* * *

"So you haven't seen any of our friends 'round here?"

"I can't say that I have."

Rogue let out a sigh, kicking his feet back and forth as he sat on a patient table. He just had minor corrective surgery on his wing, and feeling was slowly but surely coming back to it. He stared down at the wooden floor before redirecting his focus to the doctor in the room who was searching in a small closet for some bandages. The bat had been back here in this room for a couple of hours, and Silver had been told to wait in the single lobby that was no bigger than the one Rogue was currently in.

"Though it's not surprising really," the doctor said. The man was dressed for the weather with a thick long sleeved shirt and comfortable pants. He was middle aged with brown hair and pale skin like every person the Mobian duo had met so far. The human found the surgical cloth and closed the closet, approaching the bat, "We don't have many visitors way up here. Arms up."

Rogue obeyed the doc's command, raising his hands above his head. The man bounded his healing wing right against his body so it would be protected. The bat let out a puff of air when the doctor was done, more than glad that he couldn't see his breath. Somehow this building had heat.

The winged Mobian leaned back on his hands when the other was done, thinking about the cave. He couldn't let it get to him. There was no chance that anyone else was in there when it collapsed. He and Silver had been generally in the same area, so their friends should've been right there with them, or not there at all. No one was in that cave. He subtly clenched his fists. No one.

"That should be it," the man – Dr. Jones, his nametag read – commented, putting away the roll of wrappings. "You should be good to go. Make sure to not use it much for a couple of weeks so it can properly heal."

Rogue nodded, hopping off the table and cracking his back, "Thanks doc! I really appreciate your help. Um…" the bat started, and the doctor peered at him in curiosity, "Don't want to sound rude, but do know the closest place that's more…populated? So there's a better chance of our friends bein' sighted?"

The man's brow furrowed, "Well…the nearest actual 'more populated' place that's closest to here is Apotos."

"Apotos?"

Dr. Jones nodded, looking a bit hesitant, "Yes, it's a port town that's…quite a distance away from here. Many miles. And…you might need a boat."

Rogue blinked, confused, "A boat? Why?"

"…Because you need to cross the ocean."

* * *

Silver could hardly breathe as the arms holding his neck tightened considerably. He glanced askance at the bat on his back (Rogue had _refused_ to travel around like they did the first time. He had settled on riding piggyback) who was unconsciously strangling him. "D-Do you…" the psychic wheezed, "…m-mind?"

The winged one wasn't even paying attention to him. His teal irises were trained on the rocking waves they were flying over, the water reflecting the multitude of colors formed by the sunset. Yeah, the _sunset_. They had been going for a while, and Silver was _tired._ His head wasn't in the best condition, and the bat was just making it worse by basically choking him.

"Do you see those things under the surface?" Rogue asked, completely disregarding his previous words, "They look like sharks man! Do you see them?" Silver coughed, and the bat finally realized what he was doing. He smiled apologetically before focusing on the nearly opaque water below, "But seriously dude! I think I see some! Can they jump out of the water this high? They can't, right?"

Feeling a bit mischievous (and in want of some payback), Silver dropped his gaze, "You see sharks? I don't…let me get closer…" The psychic lowered their altitude, slowly decreasing the distance between them and the rolling waves. He snickered when the bat started to panic. Golden eyes shifted to take in the terrified bat, "Why are you getting so scared, Rogue? Not afraid of water, are you?"

"No I'm not afraid of water!" the other yelled, hysteria dripping into his voice as Silver crept closer to the safe sea. There weren't really sharks in it; whatever Rogue was seeing was a trick of the light. The bat tightened his grip again on the hedgehog's neck, "Just the blood-thirsty things in it! Damn it, pull up…pull up!"

Silver chuckled as he flew mere feet above the water, reaching out his hand and dipping his fingers beneath the surface. The spray dampened his legs and he was sure that the shaking Rogue was hit by some drops as well. "Still see the sharks?"

"Are you trying to kill us man?!"

"I'll take that as a no," the hedgie smirked before flipping upside down, making it so that the water was a few inches from the bat's head. "How about now?"

"IhateyouIhateyouIhateyou _Ihateyou!_ "

Silver let out a breathy laugh, sparing Rogue of anymore pain by increasing altitude to where they were before, flipping back rightside up. He felt the bat breathing hard, recovering from his 'near death' experience. The psychic felt the heated glare on his neck, "You're a freakin' _sadist_ , ya know that?"

The hedgehog shrugged, "I guess having a headache, being tired, and almost choking brings that side out of me."

"Okay, I'm sorry alright? Just don't do that again."

Before Silver could reply with a sly 'Maybe', something in the distance caught his attention. He focused on it, and the shape became clearer as they got closer. He saw multiple light colored buildings that had a slight orange tint to them, thanks to the sun. A tired smile formed on Silver's muzzle, "I think that's Apotos!"

"It's about time…" Rogue pleasantly sighed, and Silver could tell that the bat was more than ready to get back onto solid ground. The psychic was too. He couldn't remember the last time he had used his powers this much.

Not five minutes later, Silver touched down on a street that was right next to a cliff overlooking the crashing waves. He immediately sank down to his knees, Rogue climbing off his back. The hedgehog brought a hand up to his head, and he just sat for a moment. He then felt a hand on his shoulder, "Silv…"

"I'll be fine…" he breathily responded, "Just give me a minute." Rogue did, and Silver was back on his feet within sixty seconds. The hedgehog let out a deep breath, happy that he didn't have to strain his mind anymore. "So…" Silver glanced around the place, the streets fairly empty at this time of day. Hopefully not too empty. He locked gazes with the bat, "Want to split up?"

Rogue nodded, stretching his arms and rolling his shoulders, "Yeah sure. That way we can cover more ground and _hopefully_ get a lead to where anyone we know is. Meet back here in an hour?"

Silver agreed, and they split ways. The psychic decided to not use his powers to help him maneuver around the town, for he was nearly empty. If he didn't want to pass out in midair, he should restrain from flying or even moving things with his mind.

Silver spent the next forty five minutes roaming the area, talking to people who were out enjoying the sunset, and catching citizens right before they entered their homes for the night. He had no luck. The moon was showing itself now as the hedgehog trudged down a nearly vacant road. There was one person on it, sitting along the curb; this would be the last person Silver would ask before he'd go meet back up with Rogue.

It was a kid. It looked like he was picking at a bug with a stick. When he got close enough, Silver held up a hand, "Hey!" he mustered up energy he didn't know he had and jogged over to the child who was now staring up at him in curiosity. "Hey," Silver repeated when he stopped in front of the other, "I've got a question to ask you. Have you seen a bee about my size flying around here?" the kid shook his head, and the white Mobian nearly groaned in frustration, "A pink hedgehog?" He got another negative, "A two tailed fox?" Nada. "A red…err…something with spikes on his fists?" Nope.

Silver pulled on his ears before grabbing the boy's shoulders and shaking, "Have you seen _anybody_ who looks like me?!"

The child was nervous now, "I uh…I saw a bat walking around a while ago…"

"Anybody else?"

He shook his head, and Silver wanted to punch a wall.

"You know…this reminds me of Sonic asking me questions like this about a dog…thing a long time ago. Do you know him?"

Silver perked up, seeing the kid tilt his head at him. The psychic bobbed his head up and down, "Yeah, I know him." Even though that hedgehog was the _last_ Mobian Silver wanted to run into, but it was better than nothing he guessed.

"Are you looking for him too?"

"…Sure."

The boy smiled, "Then you should go to Station Square! That's where Sonic lives I think. He was on TV earlier! People were talking about him being with two fo-"

Silver interrupted him, too perplexed to want to hear the kid ramble, "Station Square? That…can't be right. Station Square's gone! A giant black hole or something ate it!"

The child looked at him like he was crazy, "Nooo…My dad was watching news coming from there like forty minutes ago. It's uh…still there."

"Still there…" the hedgehog whispered like he couldn't believe the words coming out of his own mouth. The information _was_ hard to swallow, especially when he had _been there_ when everything went down, "Are you sure?"

"Um yeah?"

Silver didn't know what to feel right now. Relief, confusion, hope, and disbelief were just a few emotions whirling around inside him at the moment. "'kay, thanks," the hedgehog muttered before running off in the direction of the rendezvous point.

Rogue was waiting when he got there. He was leaning against an illuminated light pole, gazing up at the stars that were fading in. Silver ran to the bat's side, panting with his hands on his knees.

"I didn't find anythin'," he heard, then Rogue squatted down so that they were eye-level with each other. There was a hesitant grin on the other one's face, "But I'm guessing you did?"

"You're not going to believe this," the psychic strained out, sitting all the way down. He really needed to stop relying on his powers so much. He was this out of breath after that short run? Wow. "Station Square is…still standing!"

"Wait what?!"

"Yeah!" Silver snickered, "It's still there! And Sonic's in it…I think… Maybe the others-"

"-are with him too?" Rogue finished, and the hedgie nodded. "I mean, its possible. If he got teleported there, then someone else had to too right? We were dropped as a pair, that's gotta mean somethin'."

"We gotta get there!"

Teal orbs looked over his white body. Rogue stood up and held out a hand, "I agree with you bro, but I think we should wait 'til the morning," Silver took the outstretched hand and got back up to his feet, "Because _I'm_ tired, and you practically did all the work today. How you're still standin', I have no clue man."

Silver whined, "But-"

"Nope! I bet my working wing that we're gonna have to fly there after we ask for directions, and you really don't look up to it." Rogue began walking away, fingers linked behind his head, "Now let's find a place to sleep."

Silver yawned and slowly tromped along behind the bat, not having it in him to argue any further.

* * *

"This doesn't look like Station Square."

Silver couldn't agree more. What he was looking at _definitely_ wasn't the city the pair was looking for. This one was destroyed beyond repair, plants growing out of the broken asphalt and sticking out of the windows of leaning skyscrapers. There were cars thrown everywhere, looking like they haven't been touched in years. And…and were those _rats_?

The sight angered the hedgehog, and he gritted his teeth, "If that stupid ice cream vendor didn't sell that awesome ice cream, I would go back there and…and…gah!" Silver threw his hands in the air in rage, "He gave us the freakin' wrong directions!"

Rogue sighed, scratching his cheek, "This sucks…Guess we gotta go around and maybe we'll find a road sign that'll lead us to-"

"Whoa whoa…hold up," the more adventurous side of Silver flared up, and he gave the bat a smirk, "Who said anything about going around? Let's go through and explore a bit! This place has got to be abandoned for a reason, right?"

Rogue stared at him for a long moment, "Weren't you the one who wanted to get to the Square as soon as possible?"

Silver waved him off, "I know, but if Charmy and the others are there safe and sound, then there's no rush. And plus, a little detour never hurt anyone right?"

The bat shrugged, "Guess not," he then made his way into the abandoned city, eyes darting everywhere. Silver was right beside him, gazing in awe at the damaged buildings and wondering what in the heck caused them to get like that. There was a _crater_ in the concrete in the distance! How did that even happen?

They strolled for a while until Rogue went over to the entrance of a particularly destroyed skyscraper. Silver followed and the duo both stared up _through_ the many floors of the building, seeing the blue sky that wasn't supposed to be there.

The psychic then looked around at all of the dusty and molded furniture, nudging the bat, "Do you think that the buildings here are haunted?"

A cool wind drafted through the lobby they were in, and Silver saw the chill make its way down Rogue's back. The winged Mobian swallowed thickly, "You ready to go bro? Because I am. Not that I'm scared or anything, just uh…"

"Mhmm, sure," Silver replied smugly and was about to say something else, but the expression on Rogue's face made him pause. The bat's large white ears were twitching, and the psychic felt the anxiety start to bubble up in his gut, "Rogue? What-"

"We have to hide!"

Rogue had whispered that so forcefully that Silver could do nothing but comply. The bat had ran over and hurdled over a receptionist's desk, and the psychic was right on his tail. The duo crammed themselves into that pocket of space a person's legs were supposed to go and waited. They were both staring at each other, breaths as light as they could make them. Silver opened his mouth to ask what the other heard, but Rogue just shook his head and put a finger over his lips.

Silver didn't remain clueless for long however, because he heard the voices.

"-should have killed my worthless copy when I had the chance."

The hedgehog frowned. Was that a robot? What was a robot doing here?

"There's no point in thinking about it; what happened is in the past. There isn't any way to change it."

Both of the Mobians under the desk tensed at those words spoken, recognizing the damned _reptile_ that was behind them. Silver wanted to do nothing more than to go out there and finish what he had started with the chameleon, but Rogue's warning glare kept him planted. He just stayed and listened, trembling with anger. It wasn't hard to tell that Espio and whatever he was with were getting closer.

"You are just saying that because our mission was a failure."

"I'm saying that because it's true. Now hurry and get me inside; I need something for my face."

"You are treading on thin ice, chameleon. Do not push me."

The mammalian duo went stock-still when the two talking entered the building. They both held their breaths and didn't dare to move, figuring that one twitch would give away their location. There was no more conversation, and Silver was worried that they had been found out somehow, but then there was a click. It was the sound of a latch opening. Curiosity getting better of him, Silver peered over the top of the desk – despite Rogue's wishes – and saw that his ears identified the voices correctly.

Espio and a robot that looked suspiciously like Sonic were facing away from him. The mech was opening a trap door in the ground, and the chameleon walked down the stairs that the door revealed. The blue metallic being followed Espio, and the entrance was covered up once more. Silver heard the sound of another latch.

The psychic stared a little while longer before returning to his sitting position with a glint in his golden eyes. Rogue saw this and shook his head, "Oh no no, we are _not_ going in there!" he whispered/shouted even though the hedgehog doubted that the bad guys could hear them now.

"Why not?" Silver countered, "This is our chance! We _need_ to go!"

"We _can't_ dude! Don't you see? We have no idea what's down there!"

"So?"

"'So' he says…" Rogue mumbled, dragging a hand down his face, "We don't know how big this underground place is! We don't know if there's traps, or _other_ robots, or-"

"Who _cares_ about all of that stuff? If it's a maze, we'll figure it out! And there are other enemies, we can take care of them! With my powers and your super kicks, we can take them down!"

"We're takin' a _huge_ risk here bro if we go down there. What in the heck do you want to do that's worth that risk? Threatening him? Taking him? Putting him in jail? I don't think that's worth our _lives_ man."

Silver narrowed his eyes at him before glancing at his hands, "I wasn't planning on doing any of those things."

"Then what…" Rogue trailed off. He comprehended what Silver was saying. The bat clenched his teeth, seeming a bit uncomfortable, "…isn't that a little too extreme?"

"Too extreme?!" The hedgie rose his voice, and the other quietly shushed him. Silver lowered it, but continued with his train of thought, "Espio killing Shadow was too extreme. Espio killing Cream was too extreme. Espio killing her _whole family_ was too extreme! He _deserves_ it!" Silver moved out from under the desk and stood up. He shook off Rogue's hand and walked over to the trap door, determined.

Before he could bend over, the bat was in front of him, holding his hands out. There was a pleading expression on his face, "I get it! I get it… You want revenge and hell, I do too, but there's gotta be a safer way to do this."

Silver glared hard at him, but then his body sagged and his shoulders slumped. He held his head in his hands as his cheeks dampened, "I know w-what you're saying...but…" he peered up at Rogue with moist eyes, "But w-what if this is our _only_ ch-chance? W-We can't just do nothing! It'll t-tear me up inside that we knew that h-he's down there and _we didn't do anything a-about it!_ "

Rogue sighed, "Silv-" but then he cut himself off, ears twitching again. Without even saying anything this time, the bat pushed the hedgehog back over to the desk. They both hid once more, Silver wiping away the tears that had spilled.

There were no voices this time, just the whirling of gears. The sound got closer until whatever that was producing it was right where Espio and his buddy had been. Both Mobians feeling brave, the pair peeked over the desk and had to resist the urge to gasp. There was Eggman in a hovercraft, and beside him was Omega. He was in the same condition they had last seen him in, but it didn't mean that he was any less of a threat.

When they both disappeared, Rogue turned toward Silver, "Still think we should go?"

Silver scoffed, "Definitely."

The bat smirked, "Good, because I think so too. That robot seriously has to go, one way or another."

The psychic mimicked his expression, "I'm glad you finally see it my way!" Silver was about to move again, but Rogue caught his arm, "Hey what gives?"

"We can't just march in there all willy-nilly," the bat explained, "We need a plan man."

Content that the other was now on board, he was more than happy to hear out any plan the bat could conjure up. Silver settled himself back down, "Okay then, got any ideas?"

Rogue pursed his lips, "A couple. Alright, so, there's no way we can take them all on at once, so we have to fight them one at a time."

"How do we do that?"

"Your powers dude! If luck's on our side, the ceilings would be high enough that we can stick to them without being seen." Silver nodded, liking that. Rogue continued, "I'm not worried about Eggman, he can be dealt with whenever. Now, with Omega, I've 'beat' him before. It would've been harder for me to dodge his attacks without you here, but since you are, it will be _so_ easy to take out his other arm. Then he should be useless."

Silver was shaking with excitement, "I seriously can't _wait_ to get down there!"

The bat chuckled, "Just wait a sec bro, let me finish. With Espio…I guess you can do what you want with him. That other robot that was with him though...what did he look like?"

The hedgehog rubbed his nose, "He was skinnier than Omega, had claws, and he looked a lot like Sonic."

Rogue took the information in and thought on it. He then snapped his fingers, beginning to explain, "Going by your description, he doesn't seem as bulky as Omega is, so I'm thinkin' that he's more offensive than defensive. A hard hitter. Fast too. It shouldn't be too hard to tear him apart with you holding him still though."

"I'm going to have _so_ much fun with this."

"Just be careful man," Rogue added, concern filtering through those teal irises, "You can't take any hits to your head while I can't take any to my back. Gotta watch out for that."

"Pfft, thanks for the advice _mom_. I got it."

Rogue rolled his eyes, "I say we wait a couple minutes or so just to make sure none of them are still by the entrance. Getting caught without doing anything would be a _major_ pain."

A couple seconds went by before Silver couldn't take the anticipation anymore and jumped to his feet, "We've waited long enough! Let's go Rogue!"

Said bat must've known that arguing would get him nowhere because he joined the hedgehog at the trap door without complaint. They looked at each other and nodded. Silver undid the latch and carefully opened the door so that no noise was made. Rogue tiptoed down the metallic steps first, and Silver followed, lowering the tiled entrance until it closed with a near silent click.

Golden orbs then absorbed the long metal corridor that led a ways down. Rogue was a few steps lower than him, his footfalls too quiet to register. Inwardly snickering, Silver surrounded himself in a cyan aura and lifted himself off the ground. He flew down the stairs and past the bat, hearing a muffled 'Show off' as he went.

His descent was then ended when he came face-to-face with a shiny grey door with an electronic passcode lock. Silver stared at it until he heard a voice behind him, "Just great… Our plan's ruined before we even got inside!"

"Is it though?" the hedgehog threw a sly smile over his shoulder before raising an arm, fingers splayed out. Silver then furrowed his brow in concentration and began to tense his fingers, curling them inwards. The metal before him screeched in protest, the corners of the door crumbling in on itself. The psychic was proud of himself until the alarms started to blare.

"Get us on the ceiling man!" Rogue shouted, and Silver wasted no time. Using his powers, both mammals floated through the now empty doorframe and then up against the ceiling. Silver glanced over to the bat, wondering what were they supposed to do now. Rogue saw this and breathed out, "We bide our time dude. _Somebody's_ gotta check this out."

And someone did.

Silver's blood began to boil when Espio turned the corner, apparently alone. Perfect. The chameleon paused in his step when he saw the disfigured door; he approached it cautiously. When the reptile was right under them, Silver made his move. He shifted his hand, and now Espio was trapped. And the ninja knew he was if the shocked expression on his face was anything to go by.

The psychic was ecstatic while he noticed that Rogue was more apprehensive. Silver didn't focus on that as he slowly brought himself and the bat down to the ground. He was more focused on the appalled look the reptile had on his face.

Silver smirked as Espio scowled, "It's you two."

"Yeah," the hedgie mocked, "It's _us_ two." Silver rose his arm, and the chameleon was effortlessly lifted off the floor, frozen in space. Yellow irises took in the other's broken arm, "Aw, it looks like you're in pain," he said in faux-concern, "Let me put you out of your _misery,_ " the hedgehog started to curl his fingers again, and Espio began to sputter as his throat slowly closed in on itself.

"U-Uh bro…" Rogue pipped up from beside him, watching the scene warily, "I think we should just turn him in… Death would be too good for him, dontcha think?"

"Oh no, this isn't for him Rogue, this is for me," Silver scowled, tensing his hand more and got wheezing in response, "For Cream. For Shadow. I don't care about _him_ anymore."

The bat grabbed his glowing arm, tone somewhat pleading, "But you should man! Because he needs to be punished! And life in prison is one _hell_ of a punishment if I do say so myself."

"Y-Y-You ssshould…l-listen…t-t-to hhim…"

Silver glared up at Espio, "And who gave _you_ permission to speak?" he shouted, slamming the chameleon into the wall twice before holding him in the air again. There were blood flowing from the reptile's lip because his teeth had smashed down on it.

Despite the chronic pain he _had_ to be in, Espio managed to get out, "I-If I d-d-die…" he coughed harshly; Silver's grip never loosened, "Th-Then ssshe d-dies…as w-well…"

 _She?_ Silver mentally questioned, his mind going to the most familiar female that he knew. His rage skyrocketed as he pictured a pink hedgehog. The hedgehog brought the chameleon to his face, growling out, "You're bluffing. You're bluffing!" Desperation was seeping in to his words.

That reptile had the nerve to smirk, "D-Do you w-want to tesst…that th-theory?"

"I-It's not worth the risk Silv…"

Rogue's voice echoed behind him, but he paid it no mind. Silver met the other's smirk, "Fine then. I guess we'll have to go find her, and _then_ kill you."

"Oh ho! Will you?" Silver froze, and he saw Rogue stiffen up beside him, "Now _I_ suggest that you power down before I do something drastic.

The hedgehog turned his head to look behind him, and his breath caught in his throat. There was Eggman (somehow _alive_ ) in that same hovercraft. To the left of him was Omega who was pointing a very threatening machine gun at the two intruders. To the right of the rotund man was the mystery robot, its red eyes flashing dangerously. There was a low hum, and the middle of the blue bot's body was lighting up. _A laser_ , Silver instantly thought, mind going into overdrive.

The psychic could use his powers on all four of them, but it wouldn't last near as long as he wanted it to so they could fight. _But…_ Yellow irises flickered over to the open door, _It'll be more than enough time for us to escape._ Silver then frowned, remembering what Espio had said. Amy could be here. Yeah, the chameleon could have been lying through his teeth just to save his hide, but they couldn't just leave her here. And maybe…just maybe if they were taken prisoner, then they could find her and break her out.

Silver calmed himself and dropped Espio to the ground; the chameleon was coughing and wheezing trying to get air back into his lungs. The hedgehog lifted his hands over his head without turning around. Rogue stared at him incredulously, but did the same thing, his limbs subtly trembling.

"Ah! Good choice!" Teal and golden orbs shifted to meet the scientist who was stroking his mustache. Eggman looked Silver over first, "I wouldn't have guessed that you two would be the ones breaking in, at least, doing it together. The psychic from the future…" Silver's eyes widened, _What?_ The doctor then drifted his attention over to Rogue, "And _you_ R-" the man paused, and then a thoughtful frown grew on his face, "Hm…I never thought that she had any siblings… But no matter! You two…"

"Punish them d-doctor," Espio strained out, just now picking himself off the floor. He wiped his bleeding lip, glaring at the intruders, "They deserve that and more."

" _Quiet_ you!" Eggman shouted, and the caught pair shared surprised looks, "You're not innocent either! _You_ are somehow entangled in all of this. This is some part of a grand scheme of yours, isn't it? I've thought about it, and I _cannot_ take any risks with you. Metal!"

The blue robot turned its glowing body toward Espio, and the chameleon paused. Then, Silver was sure that _no one_ in the area had expected it, the reptile chuckled. He didn't look worried at all! There was a _laser_ pointing at him, and he wasn't fearing for his life?

"Looks like you have to come to a decision earlier than I anticipated, Metal," Espio said, rubbing his neck. The nasty grin didn't go away, "Because of _these two_ barging in, it's time for you to pick a side."

"Pick a side?" Eggman echoed, "What in the world are you talking about, chameleon?"

Espio ignored him, simply gazing at the blue mech that Eggman called Metal. Said robot didn't move for the longest, but after a moment, Metal (unfortunately) aimed his laser at the caught Mobians. Then, Omega turned his gun to point right at Eggman's head, making the man break out in a sweat.

"Metal! Omega! What are you two pieces of scrap metal doing?"

"Picking sides," Espio answered for them, taking a confident step forward. "And it looks like…you're left all alone."

Silver couldn't believe that this was happening. Did they…Did they just _instigate_ Espio's usurp of Eggman's authority? Now the chameleon had _another_ seemingly powerful robot by his side? Espio was definitely the worse of two evils...

"D-Dude, we screwed up…" Rogue whispered.

And Silver completely agreed with him.

* * *

 **Next chapter…the reunion!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer- Sigh…no…**

 **Chapter 19- All together now!**

"Heya Tails!" Sonic chirped when he opened the door to the garage. The hedgehog closed the door behind him, and he missed the fox subtly jumping at the speedster's abrupt entrance.

The bruise on his face feeling more prominent than ever, Tails faced his brother as the other stepped up beside him, staring curiously at the computer screen and chuckling guiltily when he saw his communicator on the desk. The kit gave him a grin, picking up the device and handing it to the 'hog, "Yeah, make sure you actually _take_ it next time, okay?"

Sonic rolled his eyes before tucking the communicator in the cuff of his glove. He put a hand on his hip and trained his gaze on the cub, "It wasn't _exactly_ my-" the hero cut himself off when he saw the ugly black and blue mark on the vulpine's cheek. Alarms went off in his head as he reached out to stroke it lightly, not missing the wince that overtook the fox's expression for a fraction of a second. "Whoa Tails, what happened?"

"Well, uh…" The kitsune began, letting out a heavy sigh. "Let's just say a lot of things happened while you were gone."

As far as Sonic knew, the only thing that happened was his home becoming a full house. The azure hedgie glanced back the way he came, the ghost of a frown marring his muzzle. He knew that Shadow had become friends with them, but Tails had gotten hit _somehow_ , and the only change from when Sonic left and now was them. He wasn't one to make broad assumptions, but, "Did one of them out there-"

Tails held up his hands, dismissing that thought completely, "No! No, it wasn't any of them!" Sonic seemed to relax at that, and the kit knew it was because the hero wouldn't want to confront anyone out there. If somebody wasn't Eggman or a robot or someone who _really_ deserved it, Sonic didn't like serious conflict. "You didn't see Station Square?"

"Station Square? Nope. I jumped off the plane and headed straight here while TT and Shadow went on in," Sonic leaned against the kit's chair, scratching his nose. His emerald orbs hadn't left the painful splotch on Tails' face. "Somethin' go down there bud?"

Tails nodded, gesturing to the flashing monitor, "A little robot invasion went down," he said.

Sonic groaned, throwing a hand in the air, "Seriously? Without me being there? If only if I had my communicator, you would've told me, and I could've sped over and sent Ol' Eggy packing!" The hedgehog his hung head in mock disappointment, "Oh well, there's always next time. So what did he want?"

"Actually, I didn't see him," Tails confessed, "The others in there didn't either, except probably our Amy," at the speedster's somewhat confused expression, the kit explained, "Okay, when you three were gone, the other Amy, Knuckles, Vector, Charmy, and Mephiles found me. After you left, most of us went to the city to fight the robots there. Mephiles stayed here with Vanilla." Sonic made a face, and Tails knew what he was thinking, "I know, it was weird for me too first seeing him, still is."

The hedgehog shrugged, "As long as he doesn't start shoutin' Iblis, then he's cool with me."

The fox snickered and resumed his tale, "So anyway, we went, and all the robots were destroyed already."

"Ha!" Sonic laughed, "Eggy must've figured that whatever he was doing was pointless and just gave up."

Tails' smile was a bit forced, "Not quite…Actually, apparently Rouge and our Amy took care of them," the hero seemed a little surprised, but didn't comment. Tails went ahead and got to the point of his story, "They had some help though…the other you was there too."

That made Sonic pause. _The other me? Okay wait…if Tails didn't actually fight any bots, and no one in the living room did that to him, then…_ The speedster's body tensed as he came to a conclusion. Sonic was suddenly breathless, fighting to keep himself under control, "Did he…?" Tails glanced away and nodded. The hero was one second away from running back to the city and tracking that bully down. Sonic had saved one fox from him only for his twin to hurt the _other._ Sonic's little brother. This was beyond ridiculous, and the azure speedster was already tired of it.

Tails must've seen the 'ready-to-rumble' expression on his face because he placated, "Don't! Just don't, alright? It doesn't hurt that bad-"

"Well yeah _now_ lil' bro, but how about when he hit you?" The fox was silent, and Sonic took a deep breath to calm himself. Believe it or not, but Sonic wasn't easy to rile up. It took a lot to get him angry. And his doppelganger had done it _twice_ in a day that was barely over. That's saying something. The hero let out a heavy puff of air, putting a comforting hand on the younger one's shoulder, "Just know that he's not gonna put his hands on you again." Sonic winked and gave a thumbs up, "Or he's gonna get some mad karma."

"I believe it," Tails gave a grin before changing the subject altogether, "So did you, Shadow, and TT find anything?"

Sonic pursed his lips, "Hm, not any clues no." Tails furrowed his brow, feeling like there was more. He was right. The hedgehog absently tapped a finger on the desk, "But we did run into other me at White Acropolis."

Tails blinked, "Really?"

"Yep. He tried to get at TT, and we had to take Sonic to the hospital," he smiled, but it didn't quite reach his green irises, "So you can see how that ended." _Hospital?_ Tails thought, going back in his mind to how beat up his brother's twin looked, _Sonic did that?_ He really couldn't be that surprised though…If one thing set off Sonic, it was someone threatening his friends, especially the ones of the two-tailed variety.

"So after dropping him off," the 'hog continued, "we ran into Espio and Metal Sonic at Angel Island." Tails gasped, and Sonic rubbed his neck, "Yeah…so Egghead and him are working together and they have Cream." The hero focused up on the ceiling, "We found 'em, things didn't go as planned, heh…" he refocused on the flabbergasted kit, "We got Knux and the Master Emerald though! Shads is takin' the rock to GUN to see if they'll guard it for us, and Knucklehead…he's kinda knocked out, but he'll be back with us soon enough."

"Wow…" Tails breathed out, "You had a trip huh… So what about Espio? Where is he now?"

Sonic shrugged a single shoulder, "Probably headin' back to Eggman's base or something."

The fox held his head in his hands, "This whole situation is just horrible."

"Don't have to tell me twice buddy," Sonic commented before a grin spread across his face, "But don't worry, it's gonna get better really soon! Eggy's gotta show his head sooner or later!" When his little pep talk didn't seem to brighten the vulpine's mood, Sonic switched gears, "So, how about you come with me to the livin' room? Chaos knows that Imma need all the help I can get convincing them that I'm not gonna randomly throw a punch."

Tails scoffed in amusement, standing out of his chair. He welcomed the distraction, "Sure! I don't think _another_ invasion is going to happen while I'm gone from the computer."

"And if there is, I'm sure Shads can take care of it until I get there," Sonic snorted as he headed to the door. He turned the knob and opened it only to hear yelling coming from the living room. The hedgehog paused for a moment, peering back over his shoulder at Tails who was hearing it too. The hero wouldn't have been so surprised if they were _different_ voices.

"Yes he is!"

"No he _isn't!_ "

"What…" Yellow ears were flattened against their owner's head, "Why are the two Amy's shouting at each other?"

"Better question is why no one is stopping it…" Sonic muttered.

Tails played with his namesakes, "Well, we know how our Amy is, and now that there's two of them…"

Sonic just mentally braced himself as he continued onwards. The pair eventually made it to the room and took in the scene presented to them. The two Amys were scowling at each other by the couch, and the other Mobians watching were either mildly entertained by the whole thing, or mildly annoyed by the yelling.

Vanilla was the first to notice the brothers, "Oh hello sweeties."

All heads turned their way and Sonic raised a hand in greeting. He opened his mouth, but an Amy bounded over to him before he could say anything. Her jade orbs were glistening, "Sonikku!" she angrily pointed over to her twin, who was harshly examining him. "Tell her that you're _not_ mean!"

" _Please_ do, because my ears have taken enough damage for today," Knuckles grumbled from the floor.

Sonic chuckled at the echidna's comment, the gazes on him becoming more shocked as he did so. What? Have they never heard him laugh before? Well, Sonic really couldn't be surprised. The hero walked more into the room and leaned on the back of the couch, focusing on the more agitated Amy. Hm…they were gonna need nicknames too huh? Let's see… Amy Rose. Rose… Sonic smiled when he got one, "The only mean Sonic you gotta worry about is the one out there, Rosy," he said, gesturing the in the direction of the Square.

Dream-world Amy blinked, and Sonic wasn't sure if his smile or his nickname for her threw her off. Maybe both, "Rosy?"

"Yeah! It's so it won't get confusing, ya know? And it has a nice ring to it, dontcha think?"

Rosy furrowed her brow, "I guess…" but then the frown returned to her face, "Hey don't change the subject! If you say you aren't mean, then why did you act like that toward Amy?"

Sonic cocked his head, "Like what?"

"You pushed her away!"

The hedgehog's attention drifted over to Amy, who looked curious about his answer as well, "Uh, you see…"

Tails decided that it was time to save his big brother, "Does that really matter right now though?" He ignored the four blazing jade irises trained his way as he gestured to the blue speedster, "What's important is that you're meeting a Sonic that doesn't want to ruin your day!" He laughed as the hero ruffled his fringe, hearing a lowly whispered, 'I owe ya one pal'.

Rosy saw this and her expression softened, the action reminding her of TT and hers relationship. Speaking of TT…. "Where's _my_ little brother?" She asked, "He's supposed to be with you right?"

"And Shadow!" Charmy pipped up from his place hovering in the air. The bee hovered over and circled the speedster's head, "Where's he?"

Sonic stared at the insect for a moment before grinning, "Shads is with the other Tails, CB," the bee didn't oppose his name (actually, the kid giggled when he said it), so Sonic went on, "They're goin' to Station Square."

"Um, why?" Vector questioned before slumping in his seat a little, "And don't tell me that you're gonna nickname me too."

"It's better for everyone if I did VC!"

The croc groaned, "Why do WE have to be the ones nicknamed, huh?"

At Sonic's hesitant look, Tails took over, "I mean, you guys are the visitors here…If it was the other way around, then we wouldn't mind being renamed for convenience!"

VC pouted, "Fine…"

"It makes sense," Knuckles yawned from the floor, stretching his back, "So when we all meet our doubles it won't be chaos." Lazy amethysts shifted over to Sonic, their owner more than glad that this one wasn't a headache, "So what's mine? Red?"

The speedster blinked, "It…yeah actually! How'd you know?"

Red's mind went back to that bat, "Lucky guess."

CB flew over and plopped himself down on his favorite seat: Mephiles' head, "You don't have to name Mephy right? Because he isn't…around in your world?"

Sonic focused on the uncomfortable looking striped hedgehog on the floor, seeing how his gaze was making the other nervous. Sonic knew – from what he was told – about Mephiles' history with the other Sonic. He was determined to have Mephy trust at least one hedgehog. The hero smiled, and felt really good when the shadow 'hog gave a meek one back, "Nah, it's fine! You guys already did it," he let out a short laugh.

The content smile stayed on Sonic's face as he swept the room with his gaze, satisfied that the other dimension Mobians seemed comfortable with him at least. He had thought that the whole process would take as long as it did with TT, but he guessed that the other him hadn't impacted them as much as he did the shy fox. Sonic was making progress with TT, sure, but it was going to take a while before he was completely at ease.

"You didn't answer my question," VC interrupted Sonic's musings, "Why are Shadow and Tails…TT – you know who I'm talkin' about – going to Station Square?"

Sonic and Tails shared a look before the former ran his fingers through his quills. "Well, there's kinda a lead-up. Long story short, me, Shads, and TT went up to White Acropolis, and we ran into the other me there." The occupants of the room was paying apt attention, even Vanilla; she wanted to know everything about Sonic's twin, for she couldn't picture a blue hedgehog doing anything intentionally bad. Sonic sighed, "We all rumbled a bit until he went for TT, then I went hard on him."

"You…protected Tails?" Rosy barely managed to get out, not completely believing that an azure speedster actually _helped_ her little brother. A small smile appeared on her muzzle, "I take back everything bad a said about you!"

Amy looked smug, "See? I was right!" she skipped back over to her doppelganger and giggled, "My Sonic is _nothing_ like the other one, believe it!"

 _Aaannnndd they're friends again,_ Mephiles thought, observing the two pinkettes smiling at each other. Mephy then refocused on Sonic when he began to speak again, trying to get used to the friendly expressions that had replaced the scowling and growling. It was a welcome change.

The speedy hedgehog gave the girls a lopsided grin before resuming, "Yep, then we had to take him to the hospital," that caused a couple of chuckles to echo around the room, "We went back out after that and uh…let's just say there were some unwelcome guests on Angel Island."

Red rose a lethargic brow, "Who?"

"Espio," there were gasps all around, and Vanilla looked she was going to cry again. So was Amy. "He was there with a bot Eggman built, some stuff happened, and we got away with the Master Emerald and an unconscious Knuckles."

"Where is that _chameleon_ now?" The green croc growled out, fists clenched.

"We don't know," Tails answered with a sigh, "They have Cream, and we have no idea where they're hiding." The kit then instantly regretted saying that when the mother rabbit suddenly got up and made her way back into Sonic's room, expression twisted in despair. The fox felt horrible, "Oh no…"

"It's alright bud…She just needs to be alone for a while," Sonic breathed out, watching as the rabbit disappeared. He then turned to the others who all had solemn expressions on their faces. His 'cheer-everyone-up' switch had been turned on, "C'mon guys! We _will_ get Cream back! With the giant rock protected by GUN, there's no way Eggman'll get it! Or Espio!"

"GUN's protecting it?" Rosy scrunched her nose up in distaste.

Sonic waved her off, "They might be…iffy sometimes, but they'll do their job! No worries!" _Hopefully._

"Wait! How is hiding the emerald gonna help us find Cream?" CB questioned, playing with a dark quill.

The blue hero scratched his cheek, "It _that_ won't really, but Eggy'll show his face eventually! He always does! Trust me, he's done it _plenty_ of times," he scoffed playfully, "Thwarted him every single time!"

"The Sonic we know doesn't fight him until he hits the city," Red drawled out, laying back on the ground and rubbing his stomach, "What about you?"

"Pfft, I don't know if the other me is just lazy or what," Sonic beamed before he started to count off on his fingers, "But I've chased Eggman under the sea, through volcanos, and even into outer space!"

"Whoa…" The bee gaped. CB then bubbled up with excitement, "Tell us one of your adventures! Pretty please!"

"Does everybody else want to hear?" There were nods all around, Amy doing so because she just loved listening to her self-proclaimed boyfriend's voice. Tails inwardly laughed as he watched Sonic prepare himself to share his story. The kit backed out of the living room and returned to the garage, knowing that whatever Sonic was going to say wouldn't be any new news to him.

As he closed the door, he heard, "Okay, so can any of you say that you've been sucked into a story book before?"

* * *

"We are _not_ spending extra time and man-power to protect the emerald when there is _already_ someone who has that specific job. If he is neglecting his duties, speak with him, not _us._ "

"But Commander, Knuckles is incapacitated at the moment and-"

"That's not our problem."

Rouge was one second away from telling the Commander exactly _why_ he needed to remove that stick out of his ass, but then she realized that doing so would probably make things more complicated. With GUN involved in this Espio and doubles situation, things could possibly go downhill fast.

So instead, the agent took a deep breath and responded, "Alright Commander," she turned on her heel and marched over to the office door. The bat peered at the human over her shoulders, teal irises hardened, "I'm taking the rest of the day off." She stepped out and slammed the door behind her, flapping her wings and leaving the premises as fast as possible. She didn't want to hear the man's mouth anymore.

Once outside, she studied the robot carnage everywhere – apparently GUN didn't deem the little invasion important enough to get involved – and the clean-up crew as they slowly but surely heaved the metallic parts into garbage trucks.

Rouge grounded herself before tearing her focus away from the mess and onto the Tornado that was sitting off to the side. Shadow was leaning against the craft, arms crossed. TT was looking at all of the different buttons and levers the plane had. Knuckles was still out-cold in the backseat with the Master Emerald settled in his lap. She had been filled in on what happened at Angel Island (and White Acropolis. She couldn't help but feel bad _and_ smile at the end of it), and she wanted this situation solved as soon as possible.

Shadow's scarlets snapped to her when she sauntered over, "Any luck?"

"What do you think hon?" Rouge sighed, putting a hand on her hip, "He's hard-headed as always."

"I shouldn't have expected anything different," Shadow scowled, irritated beyond belief. He had half the mind to go in there and demand compliance, but the longer the organization thought he was in the hospital, the longer they would stay off his back. He'd leave them alone, for now.

The kit in the cockpit glanced down at them, ears twitching, "W-What are we going to do with the M-Master Emerald now?"

"That's a good question, sugar," Rouge fluttered her wrings a bit before looking over the impressive gem, "We can always just have Knuckles guard it at a different location."

"And have a repeat of what happened today? No thanks," Shadow opposed, following her line of sight to the large jewel, "Espio can turn _invisible_ , and unless the Master is guarded by numerous people," _Which was supposed to be GUN, but the Commander is still as uncooperative as ever,_ "It wouldn't be thoroughly protected."

Rouge hummed to herself, gears turning in her mind, "And we can't hide it neither because the doctor most likely has a tracker…What about we have Tails build something that blocks the energy?"

"Who knows how long that will take," the Ultimate Lifeform clipped, "We need the emerald safe and secure _now_. I don't want to take any chances."

TT, listening to the two conversing, peeked behind him at the item being discussed. It was pulsating energy that could easily be tracked down and found. Was there any way to…decrease its energy output? As a whole, it produced heaps, but what if… "H-Hey um…I have an i-idea." All conversation stopped as Shadow and Rouge looked up at him. TT twiddled his thumbs, "D-Do you think Eggman will b-be able to track it d-down if was in pieces?" Then he immediately saw a flaw in his plan, and he wanted to face-palm because of it, "W-Wait nevermind! If you break it, you can't really p-put it back together…I-It was stupid…"

"No," Shadow said, his brain wrapping around what had been offered, "No, you're on to something." Ruby orbs scanned the ME, taking in its slightly large size. "If the doctor has a tracker set on the Master Emerald, then the radar is only searching for a gem that emits as much energy as the emerald. If it's shattered, then each individual piece will give off less energy."

"Maybe hon," Rouge tapped her fingers on her hip, "We don't know that for sure. The doctor, even though he doesn't act like it, is smart. His radar can probably pick up _any_ Master Emerald energy. And with the ME broken into shards…I don't think they lose _that_ much power."

"It's better than nothing," the hedgehog sighed out, cracking his knuckles. "Also, it's better to have it in pieces so that the doctor and Espio will have a harder time collecting them all. It's the only plan we have."

Rouge stared at the beautiful jewel, sad to know that it was going to be defaced soon. She then focused on the being under it, "Knuckie's going to be mad."

"That's an understatement," Shadow grunted out, going over to the seat and picking the emerald up, muscles straining, "But he'll understand. Eventually."

"B-But what about p-putting it back together?" TT asked worriedly.

Rouge smiled at him, "Don't worry about that hon. It'll do it itself when given the chance." She then focused on the slightly panting Shadow, "So where are we taking it to do this? We _really_ don't need the shards flying away."

"Underground," Shadow answered, bobbing his head toward a manhole cover that was slightly hidden in the shadows of the nearest alley way. "I'm sure it'll fit in the hole." He saw the bat barely hold in a laugh and he deadpanned, "Not a _word_ Rouge."

She held her hands up innocently, "I wasn't going to say anything, sugar." Rouge flapped her wings and flew over to the manhole. Luckily this one had little groves to fit her fingers so she could attempt to get it out of the ground.

As the bat strained herself to move it, Shadow regarded TT, "Stay here until we come back." The cub nodded, and the hedgehog adjusted the Master Emerald in his grip and warped over to where the bat was, not in the mood for lugging the gem around.

"Ugh!" Rouge groaned as she lifted and pushed the heavy metal across the asphalt, creating a grating screeching sound. She shoved until the opening was completely uncovered. The albino agent looked down the dark hole, the light streaming in from above illuminating a spot far below. "This one's above concrete," she said before hopping down into the underground, "So all of the precious jewel won't get wet!" her voice echoed up.

"Alright, I'm dropping it!" Shadow warned before inching up to the entrance, the gem right above it. After counting to three, the hedgehog dropped it. There was a second of silence. He heard Rouge grunt, and there was a loud thud. She must've kicked the gem; it probably only cracked from the fall. Shadow then shielded his eyes when a column of light shot out of the hole and into the sky for a short moment. When it ended, he heard a multitude of splashes and loud clanks. He leaned over the entrance, "Is everything okay down there?"

"Just peachy!" Rouge responded, closer than Shadow expected. He backed up just in time for the bat to fly out of the sewage system, a cluster of emerald shards gathered up in her arms. She landed beside him and mischievously winked, "This is only half of them hon. The rest landed in the water."

Sometimes he wondered why he dealt with her. But then he reminded himself that she's the only one that he could stand to be exposed to for an extended period of time.

Rouge watched him jump and she grimaced a bit when she heard him sloshing around down there. Hey, at least it wasn't her. She'd make it up to him later. The winged Mobian turned on her heel and waltzed back over to the Tornado, grinning at an intrigued TT, "Glad you thought of this plan sugar," she thanked as she dumped the shards on top of Knuckles, him not moving an inch, "We would've been stuck if you haven't."

His cheeks were rosy as he glanced away, "I-I'm sure you would've th-thought of it eventually…"

"Don't sell yourself short hon," she pointed to his head, "That brain of yours isn't for nothing. Don't be afraid to speak up, because more often than not, you'll be right," she chuckled and TT joined her after a second. Well, that was until an odor crept up into their nostrils and settled. Rouge's nose scrunched up as she turned around, seeing a grumpy Shadow approach with the rest of the emerald in his hold. He was dripping, and she kind of regretted sending him down there, " _You_ need a shower asap."

"Whose fault is that?" He replied dryly, depositing the shards where the others were. He tucked one in his quills – beside the dull Chaos emerald resting there as well – so the gem wouldn't start to put itself back together again…and so he had access to his powers.

Rouge ignored his comment, "So what do we do now? Find some hiding places?"

Shadow crossed his arms, frowning at how damp they were, "We wait until Faker comes back. Then we can…" He trailed off when he saw that knowing look on Rouge's face, "What is it?"

She gazed in the direction of the blue hedgehog's home, "I don't think he's coming back anytime soon."

"Rouge…" Shadow warned, "What are you not telling me?"

The agent gestured around at the robotic carnage, "I didn't really share my story about all of this, did I?"

"I figured that you had something to do with it," the Ultimate Lifeform muttered, attention wandering to the littered streets, "But what does that have to do with the Faker?"

"Just listen," she started and glanced over to make sure TT was paying attention too; he was, "The doctor sent his robots here running all over the place, so Sonic, Pinky, and I rounded them all up." At the widening of the fox's eyes, she elaborated, "Our Amy hon." He deflated, and she inwardly smirked, _Just wait until I finish._

"Sonic?" Shadow asked, "But he was…" It clicked in his mind, and his scarlet orbs narrowed, "The other one helped you?"

Rouge nodded, "Even though he was rude and just unpleasant to be around, yes, he helped. And is probably still around here somewhere," she added, glancing around. Shadow and TT did also, the latter suddenly anxious. "But anyway, _afterwards_ is where things get interesting. Tails shows up with some interesting friends."

The hedgehog rose a brow, "Interesting?"

"Mhmm," she hummed, "As in _other dimensionally_ interesting."

TT perked up again, eager to smile but not completely sure yet, "W-Was Amy – _my_ Amy with him?"

Rouge grinned, "She sure was, and the other Knuckles, Charmy, and Vector. They all should be at the brothers' house right now. Oh yeah, and Mephiles too."

The kit was literally bouncing in his seat, happier than the bat and hedgehog had ever seen him, and Shadow absorbed the information with a blank expression on his face. Yes, he was…happy that they weren't wondering the world lost at the moment, but he didn't know what to do with all of these…extras. He knew that he sounded rude, but that's what they were. The world was fine with one of each persona, but now there were two. An extra set that wasn't needed.

Also, another little issue was that they were probably going to stick to Shadow like glue, which hedid _not_ look forward to.

"So I'm guessing that the Faker is over there talking to them," Shadow deduced with a sigh. Rouge just smiled as an answer, and TT was already revving up the plane. The striped hedgehog jumped up on the wing of the plane and balanced himself, "Might as well make a visit."

"Well you sound excited."

"I just think that the less people involved in this, the better," Shadow said as wind whipped across his face, the Tornado picking up speed and getting off of the ground. They were steadily increasing in altitude, and Rouge was flapping right beside him, "The more Espio believes are involved, the more he wants to-" Shadow cut himself off, looking down at something with a furrowed brow.

Rouge followed his line of sight, but didn't see anything but dark alley ways, "What…" She began, but then blinked in surprise when the hedgehog grabbed a shard and threw it below. The bat figured that her partner had finally snapped from all of the stress. "Why?!" She questioned as it disappeared into the shadows.

The striped hedgehog glanced at her before focusing forward, "If he has a shard, then Eggman and Espio will have to go through hell and back to get to it."

Rouge just stared at him like he had gone crazy, but then she understood, "Oh," she breathed out, "Good call hon." _And just like that, you're changing tactics. Don't blame you. Strength in numbers and all..._

A figure hidden in the darkness watched as the plane flew overhead, emerald eyes widening marginally when something fell in his direction. Sonic used his wrapped arms to push himself off the ground. Taking a steadying breath, the hedgehog wall jumped until he caught the mystery object, kneeling when he landed.

He sucked in a pained hiss when discomfort flared up from his many bruises, but he sucked it up and stood on his two feet, examining the item. Sonic recognized it immediately; it was part of the Master Emerald. He glanced up again, seeing the plane flying off into the horizon, recognizing a specific hedgehog on one on the wings.

 _Why the hell did Stripes give me this?_

This wasn't his responsibility. It wasn't when he was still in his _world_ , so it definitely wasn't now. He didn't even know what he was supposed to do with it. Use it? Protect it? Who the hell knew? He should just throw the junk away for someone else to find. It wasn't his job. It wasn't.

If anyone had asked him why he shoved the shard into his quills, he wouldn't have an answer.

* * *

The landing was smooth was TT grounded the plane in front of the familiar house. Shadow hopped down from his perch before the craft completely stopped moving; Rouge was at his side. The wind had air-dried the hedgehog, so the smell was nearly nonexistent. They were about to approach the front door, but then the garage began to slowly rise. The occupants inside must've heard them coming.

The moving door had barely risen before something darted from under it. The Ultimate Lifeform's only warning was a loud, "SHADOW!" before he was abruptly knocked over on his back with something or some _one_ hugging his midsection.

Somewhat dazed, he glanced down to see Charmy let go of him and hover right above his face, "Woops! Sorry about that! I'm just so happy to see that you're alive! I know we were told that you were, but it's different because I'm seeing you _right now_ and it's just-"

"Charmy."

The bee blinked down at the hedgehog, "Yeah?"

"Move."

"Huh? Oh! I am in your personal space, aren't I?" The bee flew away and Shadow sat up from his position on the ground, dusting the dirt off of him. "Sorry!"

"It's fine," the striped 'hog muttered, "Just don't do it again."

Rouge couldn't hold in her chuckles as she waved at the bee, "Don't mind Mr. Grumpy. He's always like this, and I'm sure you know hon."

"Hi again Rouge!" The insect energetically waved back, "Yeah he can be a grump, but I'm used to it! I'm just glad to see him alive!"

"We are too!"

Shadow shifted his focus to the hyperactive bee to the pink hedgehog who was jogging their way, a happy grin on her face. That was until she spotted TT in the cockpit. She suddenly froze in place as the two locked eyes. Then – _in typical movie fashion_ , Shadow couldn't help but mentally add – the two siblings ran (flew, in TT's case) toward each other with their arms outstretched. They were hugging each other tightly. The fox was blubbering into the pinkette's shoulder, and Amy was comforting him in every way she could.

"Well ain't that a touching sight," Vector commented as he watched, still coming closer to the hedgehog/bat duo. The croc then faced Shadow and grinned, "Just as touching as seeing you!" he placed a heavy hand on the Ultimate Lifeform's shoulder and patted it, "It's great to see ya alive man! We all were devastated when Espio told us that you weren't."

Shadow coolly bushed the hand off, "It's good to be alive. And it's…relieving to see all of you here."

"Not all of us," Knuckles drawled out as he came close, acknowledging Rouge with only a head nod. Only Shadow heard the nearly inaudible scoff that exited her mouth. The echidna linked his hands behind his head, "We're still missing a couple."

"Rogue, Silver, and Penumbra," Shadow listed after doing another scan of the area.

"Yeah!" Charmy buzzed, "We don't have any idea Silver and Rogue are! And we lost Nummy!"

"Lost?" The striped hedgehog echoed, heart skipping a beat, "What do you mean _lost_?"

"Exactly what it means, sugar," Rouge said with a lopsided grin, and Vector had to look away, "Pretty sure he's still out there alive and kicking."

Shadow huffed, folding his arms across his chest, "Then how did he-"

The hedgehog was then interrupted when there was suddenly an arm around his shoulder. "Hey Shads! Glad you finally showed up!" Sonic teased loudly right next to his ear. Shadow shoved him away, but the blue hero sidestepped before he actually got a chance too. The speedster's signature cocky grin was on his face, "You get to be reunited with your friends! Mighty fine people if I do say so myself! Even Mephiles!" he pointed over to the shadow 'hog lingering by the garage. Mephy gave a shy wave when Shadow looked at him, "And I _never_ thought I'd be sayin' that."

Before Shadow could respond, Sonic irritatingly cut him off again when he gestured to everyone around, "Let me reintroduce you to them though!" Vector groaned; he was ignored, "Okay so, we nicknamed all of your people! We can call Amy Rosy, Knuckles Red, Vector VC, and Charmy CB. Got it?"

"This is ridiculous, hedgehog," Shadow frowned, watching as a second Tails and Amy emerged from the home, the former heading straight for the Tornado, and the latter cooing at how adorable the brother/sister duo was. "What is the point in that?"

" _Duh_ Shads, so things won't get confusing!"

"Hey, are you two gonna fight?" CB innocently asked, "Because you two are usually fighting by now…"

Sonic blinked before smirking, "Nah! He loves me too much," he mocked, and Shadow was so close to throwing the first punch. "Isn't that right Shads?"

Keeping himself from doing something drastic, Shadow plucked an ME shard and shoved it into Sonic's hands, inwardly grinning at the slight pain he must've caused. Red stared at it in the hero's grip, interest slightly piqued, "Is that the Master Emerald? Why…" Purple orbs drifted over to the backseat, and he changed his question altogether, "Why is the other me asleep in the backseat? Under bits of the emerald?"

"Knocked out, not asleep," Tails provided from the cockpit, checking all of the plane's systems to make sure that they were perfectly fine. "Espio, remember?" he reminded absently, most of his attention on his flying baby.

Shadow took that information and analyzed it, "Are all of you caught up on what happened?"

"Yep!" Rosy chirped, hearing that question as she skipped over holding hands with TT on one side, and Amy on the other, "Everything. Well, maybe not the shattered Master Emerald part..." Mephiles, who was now in the speaking girl's shadow, poked his head out to take in the pieces of rock before him. He hadn't ever seen the Master before, and it didn't matter if it was in shards, it was still radiating importance.

"That's because we just did it," Rouge provided, taking one of the pieces and tossing it around, "We figured that they will be harder to track while they are like this-"

"-and that Espio will have _no_ chance getting his hands on all of these," Shadow growled out, finishing her statement.

"Solid plan! I'm all for it!" Sonic spun the rock around on his finger before glancing over to Red, "So you're not affected by this? At all? Knux'll probably rampage when he finds out," he chuckled.

The echidna shrugged, "I don't really get a say. Isn't my rock. But if it was, I still wouldn't mind. It's for the greater good after all."

Sonic was stunned, "Wooow. Does anybody have a tape recorder? I need you to say that again, so I can have proof that I'm not hallucinating."

Tails snickered as he hopped out of his plane and stood by his doppelganger, "Ignoring him, so what are you going to do with them Shadow? Hide them?"

Shadow nodded, "Mostly with us," he grabbed a few and tossed one to Red, one to Amy, and one surprisingly to Mephiles, who barely caught it. The Ultimate Lifeform gave the shadow hedgie the tiniest of nods, "Espio is going to have to work if he wants the Master Emerald put together again." Shadow looked back at the shards left over. There were three. One could go with Knuckles, and the other two…maybe Omega would be a good candidate.

"But wait," Amy frowned as she examined her gleaming part, "We're all gonna be together! How is that any different from Espio finding the emerald in one piece?"

Rosy nodded, seeing her logic, "Yeah how?"

"Who says that we're always going to be together?" Shadow refuted, "We will be separated for periods of time. If the Master was intact, that would never be the case."

"How many pieces did it break into?" Red asked.

"Ten," Rouge answered, rotating her ankle a bit.

VC started counting, "But I only see eight! I'm sure you have one though Shadow, so that's nine. Where's the other one?"

"He gave it to Sonic," Rouge giggled when all eyes locked on the blue hedgehog standing there who only had one piece of the gem. She smirked, "The _other_ one."

"SEROUSLY?" The croc shouted, "Do you know how unreliable-"

"Yes, I do, and that's why I gave it to him," Shadow reasoned, and the reptile promptly shut his jaw, "He may not work with a team, but alone he's efficient," _And I use that word loosely here,_ "That shard is safe with him."

"If you say so Shads," Sonic looked like he was still wary about that decision, but the expression disappeared soon after, "But now that you're here and that I've got my communicator, what to head back out?"

Before Shadow had the chance to answer, there was movement behind him. Peering back, he saw Knuckles beginning to move. The echidna groaned in his seat, rubbing his head as he slowly woke up, "Ugh…" He shifted, and the remainder of the ME shards clanked together. The guardian stared down at them, blinking confusedly, "What the? Is this...?" Knuckles held one up, face twisting into one of rage, "It is!" A gaze so furious swept across the crowd that even Shadow was a little put off by it, "WHO BROKE MY MASTER EMERALD?!"

 _Maybe we should have consulted him first…_

* * *

Espio's sly grin couldn't get wider as he watched Eggman sweat. With Metal Sonic on the chameleon's side, and Omega one command away from shooting the human at point blank, there was literally nothing the scientist could do.

An amber iris then focused on the two intruders in front of him, wondering exactly _how_ they found him here. He pushed that thought to the back of his mind; he'd think about it more later. Silver and Rogue were both frozen in fear and were both staring at the blue bot. That made this easy for him. Espio ambled up to the psychic and pinched his neck, taking a slight step back when he crumpled to the floor. Now that the biggest threat was out of the way…

"Silver!" Rogue shouted in shock before turning to face the approaching reptile, "L-Look, dude! I know we kinda barged in without knocking, but can't you just be nice for this one time?"

The bat was about to back up, but Metal's voice stopped him in his tracks, "If you move one muscle, your insides will be melted down into putty."

The bat squeaked in terror and didn't dare such much as _sway_ where he stood. His expression was one of complete and utter defeat when Espio knocked him out, his body splaying on the ground.

The chameleon then trained his poisonous gaze on the rotund man who was stock-still. Metal was aiming at him now, Espio stepping up to the mech's side, "Now to you doctor…I say it's time that we negotiate some things.

"Negotiate?!" Eggman gritted out, mustache flaring, "Who do you think you are?" he bellowed.

"Your superior," Espio retorted flawlessly, a yellow orb glinting in the artificial light, "And I want you to see me as such."

The doctor's fingers clenched as he growled, "I _knew_ I should be wary of you! Just for the wrong reason…" Then, unexpectedly, an evil smirk adorned the man's face, and Espio narrowed his working eye in suspicion, "But I think you've forgotten _one_ thing, reptile!" Suddenly, the ground began to shake and the chameleon heard the clanking of metal and whirling of gears. He looked around with irritation bubbling in his stomach when they were surrounded by robots with guns aiming right at him. "I have a robot army! Oh ho ho!"

Espio scowled at this turn of events, "Omega-"

"Oh and one more thing!" Eggman pushed a button on his hovercraft, and Metal fell to the ground not unlike the intruders before him, "Don't want him getting in the way, do w-"

"Take him out!" The chameleon shouted and the bulky robot transformed his gun into a hand and cracked it against the side of the doctor's skull, sending him sprawling out of his hovercraft. The man was now slumped against a nearby wall, unconscious with a bleeding temple.

Nothing happened at first, but then all hell broke loose.

Espio cursed under his breath when he turned invisible as soon as the bullets started flying. He flipped into the air, breathed in sharply when a projectile grazed his lower calf, and landed outside of the circle of bots who were now firing at Omega. He frowned at this. He knew that his robot could withstand a multitude of attacks with the energy flowing inside of him, but there were _a lot_ of bullets soaring and he didn't want to take that risk.

"Omega!" he tried to call over the noise as he made himself visible, "Grab the doctor and follow me!" The reptile quickly turned on his heel and sprinted away once his voice grabbed the attention of the lesser robots. Espio flickered in and out of sight to help dodge the bullets coming his way. Hearing crashing, he glanced over his shoulder to see Omega flying through them with the limp man on his back. Espio nodded at him before turning a corner, narrowly avoiding bullets through his abdomen.

It didn't take long for him to get where he wanted. In front of a particular door, Espio rushed as he checked Eggman's pockets, knowing that they didn't have much time before the pack found them again. When he found what he was looking for, he palmed it and pressed the man's loose hand on the panel by the door. It opened up smoothly to reveal two shocked Mobians.

Espio pointedly looked at one of them, "Penumbra, let's go!" When the hedgehog didn't move and just glared at him with his quills bristled, the chameleon waved the remote in his hand and the other's disposition completely changed. Cream worriedly pushed him away from her, and the striped Mobian quickly scampered up to the reptile, ears lowered. His eyes were shining with hate, but terror was one hell of an emotion.

The chameleon closed the sliding door and pointed down the long hall where the numerous robots were turning the corner. He smirked down at the rodent who was sending all of his hostility to the incoming horde. Perfect. "Attack!"

Penumbra glanced at him, and then at the adversaries. He knew that he had no other choice but to listen, because he got down on all fours and snarled like a wild beast. He shot off like a bullet across the floor, making it to the metallic group within seconds. He dodged most of the projectiles aimed his way, a couple scraping his arms and legs. When he got close enough, he spun into a ball and spin dashed the first bot, making it explode into pieces.

The hedgehog used his momentum from that to bounce off the walls, striking as many mechs as he could. Sensing a decrease in speed, Penumbra aimed himself away from the thinned horde and uncurled himself, claws screeching against the tiled floor as he eventually came to a stop.

Like a cat stalking its prey, Penumbra weaved through the incoming bullets and pounced with a growl when he got close enough. With a powerful swipe of a hand, a robotic head was ripped clean off. The hedgehog landed before ducking under the legs of the next mech and low kicked the bot to the ground. Penumbra plunged his sharp nails into the thing's abdomen and yanked out wires that made the robot short out. The striped Mobian threw those away to dodge a devastating punch only to retaliate with a kick to the face. There went another head.

There were three left. Penumbra bared his teeth at them as chaotic energy jumped from quill to quill, looking like static electricity. Espio was about to press the button; he was _not_ allowed to utilize Omega's energy, but then the hedgehog trained his angry maroon irises the chameleon's way. There was a questioning glint in them.

 _He's…asking for permission._

Espio felt empowered. Smugly, he said, "Go ahead."

His words were the equivalent to lighting a fuse. Penumbra's body grew red until the energy he was harnessing exploded, causing a multitude of shock waves to push Espio and Omega back, the former barely able to stay balanced on his feet. The chameleon covered his eye to block any debris, some of it cutting into his sides. Ears pounding, Espio lowered his arm and peered through the dust to see Penumbra panting in front of a pile of scrap metal. The reptile then glanced around to see that the area was worse for wear. Some tiles had come up, lights were either out or flickering, and the walls had scorch marks.

Espio coughed a bit, waving the dust away from his face. He couldn't help but let out a chuckle. That hedgehog was the best weapon anyone could have. "Penumbra!" He called out and beckoned when the other responded to his name. The hedgehog, now tired, trudged back over, becoming more submissive with every step that he took.

Once Penumbra was standing in front of Espio, the reptile took in the rodent's condition. He was dirty, and he was bleeding in some places. Nothing major.

The chameleon smirked at him, "Good job."

Maroons locked with a single gold, and a low growl passed through elongated canines.

"HE'S PULLING."

Espio pushed the button, dispassionately watching as Penumbra writhed in agony on the floor in front of him, "I thought you knew better than that," he chastised, releasing the other from the crippling pain. The hedgehog twitched as he looked at the floor.

"S-Sor…ry…"

Espio huffed, glancing over at the closed door. _That rabbit must be teaching him things,_ he took Eggman's hand and scanned it at the panel. The metal slid open. The reptile gestured inside, "Don't let it happen again." Penumbra didn't answer, he just went inside and Cream was already checking him for injuries. Espio closed the door, "That went well."

"I COULD HAVE TAKEN CARE OF THEM MYSELF." Omega spoke, readjusting the human thrown over his shoulder, "AND WOULD HAVE MADE LESS OF A MESS."

"That's probably true," Espio responded, walking back the way they came, wincing a bit at the small wounds himself had received. His mech was at his flank, "But, I wouldn't have been able to see exactly how much control I have over that rodent. I'm pleased to say that he won't be ignoring my orders anytime soon," he said, flipping the little remote through his fingers.

"WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW?"

Espio was quiet for a moment, and then shooed the red and black bot away, "Go stuff Eggman in a closet or something while I gather Metal. I may have a plan of action."

Omega nodded before flying away. The purple Mobian watched him go before continuing on back to where things began to get hairy. When he eventually got there, he shook his head at the scene. Rogue and Silver were still passed out. Espio went over to them and stepped on their fingers just out of spite. He then approached Metal and squatted down, examining him. _He's fully offline._ Espio glanced over to the abandoned craft, _Maybe…_

He stood back up and stepped into the hovercraft. He scanned all of the buttons and switches until one stood out to him. "Hm…" He flipped a switch and nothing happened. "Alright, that's the wrong one," he tried another, and the automobile began to start up. He hastily turned it off. By trial and error, Espio eventually found the right one, and Metal restarted.

Artificial red orbs flashed as he sat up.

The metallic Sonic swept the area until he focused on the chameleon exiting the machine. One by one, his systems came back online and when they all did, the blue bot stood up, "What happened?"

Espio stood in front of him, "Eggman shut you down, he called his other robots, Omega knocked him out, we went to the room holding the rodent, I used him to take care of the extras…I believe that's everything. Oh, and Omega is stuffing Eggman into a closet somewhere until I figure out what to do with him."

Metal absorbed this before saying, "Now that he is out of the picture for the moment, I am going to go-"

"Wait a second," Espio interjected, holding a hand out when the not-Sonic took a step in the direction of the exit, "Before you go, I have a request." Metal stopped and looked at him, but didn't comment. Espio went on, "Glean some information about the doubles. I don't care how you do it, but just leave Shadow alone. He's _my_ target," _As if you'll actually kill anyone in that group,_ "And…tell them that we want the Master Emerald. I know Eggman has a radar somewhere, but them giving it to us is much more satisfying. I have _grand_ plans for it."

Metal stared at him, and Espio would pay anything to know what he was thinking, "And if they don't comply?" he finally asked, and the reptile was inwardly relieved.

The chameleon glanced down at the white hedgehog and the albino bat. A cruel grin spread across his face, "Then we give them an offer they can't refuse."

* * *

 **Next chapter…an unwelcomed visitor!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer- I don't own any of SEGA's peeps.**

 **A/N: Wow this is a late update…I'm really sorry guys, but maybe a longer chapter will make up for it?**

 **Warnings- Some graphic stuff this chappie…beware!**

 **Chapter 20- Every action has its consequence**

What was he doing here?

That was the question he had been asking himself for a while now.

He should be out there – _away_ from here – searching for any trace of that chameleon so he could rip him a new one. He should be freeing that kidnapped bunny from the irritating reptile's hold. After finding her and dealing with that purple annoyance, he should be taking Eggman down a couple (or many, _many_ ) notches and making Omega an unusable pile of parts…which he had ultimately failed to do earlier.

But no. He was still here.

Sonic's grip on the Master Emerald shard tightened considerably, his knuckles becoming sore from the strain. The hedgehog gritted his teeth, glaring at the gem piece like all of this was its fault. The speedster then relaxed his muscles and placed the jewel back into his quills before running a hand down his bruised face. The throbbing pain that flared when he did so made him wince. Anger bubbled up when he was reminded how they got there, layering on top of the discontent he had for himself. Nails dug into his palms as he crossed his arms, the bandages around the limbs uncomfortably rubbing against the present burns.

Stony emerald irises scanned the busy streets below as their owner attempted to rein himself back in from the abyss he was falling too far into. He had already hit rock bottom once in front of Stripes in Metal City; he definitely was _not_ going to do it now where anyone could see him on top of a gas station, even though every time a stranger's roaming eyes hit him and glistened with hope, more darkness would swallow him up.

He should move, but he couldn't.

Taking a deep breath that sounded more like a trembling gasp of air, Sonic glanced down at the roof he was sitting on. He was in the same position as he was when he had carved his initials into the blackened tile, showing everyone who had been here.

But it wasn't there.

Rage flooded through his veins-

 _I'm lying to myself._

No, it wasn't rage. Far from it. He knew the answer to his own question. He was fucking mourning. Mourning over the loss of his people, his city, his _world._ Mourning over his failure. He had one damn job… _one._ He couldn't…He couldn't even do that. Everything he had worked for, _fought_ for, was gone. He knew he wasn't liked – hell, he didn't like himself sometimes (like right now) – but dammit, it still stung when he was constantly reminded that this wasn't his home. That he _couldn't go back._

He was in a foreign world that was fake. It was a carbon copy. Same sights, same sounds…but instead of making him feel powerful, it was draining his strength like a leech, making him feel like crap… And it didn't help that there was another blue hedgehog walking around calling the shots, acting like he owned the place-

 _That's because he does._

Sonic scowled when that traitorous thought broke the surface. He wanted to scream, punch, kick… It just wasn't _fair._ But then again, when was his life ever fair?

The hedgehog pulled on his ears and ducked his head when he felt his eyes unwillingly begin to moisten.

 _Here I am, crying like a stupid child who's lost…lost in an unfamiliar place that shouldn't be._ _Lost in a place that used to need me. Lost in a place where I'm replicable…F-Fuck…_

What was he doing here?

The question held a different weight to it that could easily crush him.

Before Sonic could start his dangerous downward spiral, something landed behind him. Something metal. The hedgehog hastily wiped his damp face before peering over his shoulder, quills instantly bristling when he saw robot standing there. Robots weren't _ever_ good news.

The speedster jumped to his feet, muscles tensing for a fight. He eyed the machine in front of him, brow subtly furrowing when he realized that it had a strong resemblance to him.

 _Or the other me,_ he inwardly frowned.

After looking at the body, Sonic eventually locked gazes with the blue bot, not fazed at all by the glowing red opticals staring right back at him, unwavering. The hero slowly got into a fighting stance, actually confused to why it wasn't attacking him yet. Mechs always attacked. But this one…wasn't doing a damn thing, and it was pissing him off.

Sonic glowered, baring his teeth. He hoped that he didn't look pathetic. "Well, asshole? Are you going to do somethin' or what?" He wanted the robot to fight him. He desperately wanted the distraction, and Stripes was prancing around with his other self somewhere else.

Those red eyes flashed a bit brighter, and Sonic didn't know what to make of it, so he just anticipated an attack. He'd be able to react to anything fast enough; he wasn't worried.

The voice that responded to him was male. "You must be the other annoying blue rodent. You are definitely not the one I have constantly fought before." Sonic blinked, reeling. So the other him have been fighting this metallic lookalike? And how in the hell did this pile of scrap metal know about the double situation? Before the hedgehog got a chance to ask, the mech continued, "It does not matter. I will get what I want anyway."

That rubbed Sonic the wrong way, and he growled low in his throat, "Who do you think you are, ya piece of shit?"

"Metal Sonic," the other answered, and the hero couldn't be surprised about that name. Metal took a step forward. "And I need some answers. I will go through whatever measures I need to get them."

"You're talkin' tough for something that's about to blow the hell up in a few seconds," Sonic spat, narrowing his eyes at the being in front of him. Then a sneer marred his peach muzzle. "Because nobody, especially a _robot_ , tells me what to do."

"Underestimating an opponent," Metal drawled out, his claws twitching, "I assume that all blue hedgehogs share that trait."

Sonic snarled, venom lacing his tone, " _Don't_ compare me to him! I'm nothing like that irritating jackass!"

The robot tiled his head. "What are you then?"

"I'm-" The hedgehog paused, his next words dying on his lips. He saw what the mech was doing, and it ticked him off that he almost fell for it. Sonic let out a derisive scoff. "You cheeky little shit. I'm not falling for that. If you're here just to play effing mind games, then-" The rodent cut himself off when a metallic fist rammed itself against his abdomen. Sonic gasped when the immense pain reverberated throughout his system. He didn't get the time to recover before he was roundhouse kicked in the side, the same one where that pink psycho had hammered him.

The hedgie shouted in agony as he was propelled off the roof, screams of the citizens down below covering up his own. They scattered as he plummeted. At the last second, Sonic regained his bearings and curled into a ball to soften the impact. He bounced once before uncurling himself, standing, and holding his throbbing stomach while breathing harshly.

Then, unexpectedly, Metal was in front of him again and Sonic barely had the chance to dodge. He zipped away to put some distance between him and his aggressor. As he observed the robot turning towards him, the hero's mind was going haywire.

 _How the hell? He's almost as fast as I am!_ Sonic readied himself again, any pain he was feeling dulled by the rush of adrenaline. The hero clenched his fists, those opticals staring at him again. _Dammit, I guess there's more to him than just_ _ **looking**_ _like me._ His lips twitched. _Fine, I can take this challenge and shove it six feet under. No effing problem._

It was like fighting Stripes. No different.

"I am not playing mind games." The blue mech activated his jet packs and rose into the air. A low hum was coming from him, and alarms sounded off in Sonic's brain. "I meant what I said before. I came for answers, and I will get them." A red-hot laser beam erupted from the bot's chest. Sonic instantly booked it, cursing like a sailor as he weaved back and forth to keep from getting hit.

He was wrong. This was _completely_ different.

"Well you have to try harder if you plan on getting me to spill, asshole!" Sonic jeered, frustrated that the reflective being could easily keep up with him. _He_ was supposed to be the fastest thing alive dammit, not this man-made piece of junk!

The hedgehog ran across sidewalks, the people of Station Square running for cover to escape the beams that melted down the hulls of cars. Sonic growled under his breath, trying and failing to come up with a plan to deal the tin can behind him. However, when a light pole appeared in his view, a victorious smirk replaced the deep frown. He gunned for the pole and grasped it when he was close enough. Hoping that he had the element of surprise, the hero used his momentum to swing around the fixture and launch himself at the robot.

Sonic performed a spin dash, slamming right into Metal's head. The speedster dropped to the ground, grinning nastily as the other crashed onto the asphalt, barrel rolling a good distance. The expression melted right off his face when Metal got right back up on his feet, only a shallow dent and a few scratches were caused by the rodent's attack.

The azure hedgie ground his teeth together. _He should be motionless right now!_ A thought entered his mind that made his heart skip a beat and anger boil. _Is this fucker like Omega? With the stupid energy? No…No he's not. I wouldn't have made a scratch if he was._

This one was just hardier than the rest of the robots Sonic had fought; he wasn't used to this scenario. It usually was one and done, but that wasn't the case this time.

"It is about time you finally made a move." Sonic's musings were interrupted by that monotonous voice. Metal looked over him again before looking gazes. "I've come to a conclusion." The robot began walking towards him, and Sonic held his ground, not one to back away. Those glowing irises bored into his own. "You are an inferior model."

Sonic glared at the mech, let down that he didn't begin to melt. "What in the _hell_ did you just say?"

Metal Sonic stopped not a yard away from him, seeing his body tremble with rage. "Exactly what you heard. You are nothing but a lessor duplicate. A flawed imitation. You are the failed copy of a copy."

"A copy…?" Sonic repeated, his earlier dark thoughts showing their heads again. Shaking with anger, the hero got in the robot's face, snarling like a wild animal. "I'm not a copy of _anyone!_ If anybody's a copy," Sonic jabbed a finger in the metallic one's chest, "It's _you!_ "

Metal went on like he hadn't spoken. "You are nothing but second – no – third rate. You are not the hedgehog I want to destroy. Your value is not worth nearly as much, especially if you refuse to tell me what I want to hear. You are easily replaceable. There is a high chance that your double is on his way here at this very moment…"

A clawed hand tore through Sonic's lower abdomen, and the hero's expression twisted into one of horrified shock. His scream was nothing but bloody gurgles.

"…I will just question him instead."

* * *

"HUH? WHO WAS IT?"

Knuckles' roaring voice was heard by all, filled with the promise of violence. Namesakes ready to swing, the echidna maneuvered the Master Emerald shards out of his lap and hopped out of the Tornado. Some of his muscles protested the movement, but the injuries he had received weren't important right now. Oh no. The injuries he was about to _inflict_ were at the forefront of his mind at the moment.

The guardian was seeing red, not focused on the occupants of the area, but on the fact that _someone_ here had broken his most prized possession. A hand landed on his shoulder, and Knuckles was about to start swinging, but then he recognized the voice. "There's no need to yell, hon."

Sharp amethysts snapped over to his left, rage not bating in the slightest. "No need to yell? No need to _yell?!_ " Knuckles shouted, shaking off Rouge's hand and rounding on her, "The Master Emerald is in _pieces!_ Do you not _see-"_

"Oh I see it alright." The bat grinned and wiggled a shard that she had in her possession in front of his face. Knuckles, ready to explode, made a swipe at the jewel to take it back, but the GUN agent flapped her wings to get airborne, just out of the echidna's reach.

"Come back down here bat and _give it to me!_ " Knuckles yelled, face matching his fur. He was downright _livid._

There was a mischievous glint in her eyes that he didn't appreciate. "Maybe I will!" She then gestured to the space around her. "After you calm down and decide to stop being rude. You are in the presence of _guests_ sugar, and you aren't making a good first impression."

"Guests?" Knuckles echoed, rage fading a bit to make room for confusion. He glanced away from her and scanned the crowd. "What gue – oh." At first, he just focused on Tails and TT, the latter looking extremely wary. That duo wasn't really surprising, but the two pinkettes by them absolutely were. One was rolling her eyes and shaking her head (one arm was behind her back, which was suspicious), used to the echidna's outbursts, but the other was as unsure as the kit hanging onto her arm.

Then the guardian glanced over to Vector and Charmy, wondering if these were the ones he knew or not. Because of their slightly surprised faces – and that an Espio was nowhere to be seen – Knuckles deduced that those two weren't from here. Seeing movement out of the corner of his eye, the echidna's attention shifted to one of the Amys' shadow. He frowned at the uneasy reptilian irises that peered at him from the darkness. That had to be Mephiles.

Keeping certain memories at bay that might set him off, Knuckles focused on what seemed to be the last of the doubles. Two purple gazes locked together, and the guardian narrowed his eyes when he saw that the other him was holding a shard of the green gem. Knuckles stomped over to his twin and jabbed a finger a red chest. "I bet it was you! _You_ broke the Master Emerald!"

The violet orbs he was looking into were apathetic. "How do you figure?"

Knuckles was a bit taken aback at how disinterested his mirror image sounded. Did he not get that what he'd done was serious?! The echidna poked the other not-so-gently. "Because you don't have any incentive to keep it intact! You don't care about it at all!"

The other red Mobian held his hands up innocently, the emerald held loosely in his grip. "You're right, I don't, but why would I want to break it? That's extra energy that I wouldn't spend."

Knuckles growled, "Just admit it! You-"

He was cut off when his double looked past him. "Hey Rouge, can you get him or something? I really don't feel like arguing about this."

The guardian swore he had steam pouring out of his ears. "This is between me and y-"

"Whoa Knux!" A voice pierced through the air, and the next thing Knuckles knew, Sonic was at his side. The speedster tossed his shard up and down, purple orbs locking onto it. Sonic gave him a grin. "I know you're mad and all, but don't go pointin' fingers! Red here didn't do it, that's for sure!"

"What do you mean that he didn't-" Knuckles started before blinking, "Did you just say Red?"

Red nodded his head. "Yep, he did. It's my nickname."

"But…why?"

"Told you it was idiotic, Faker." Shadow commented from beside the plane.

Sonic put a hand on his hip. "No it's not! Does _no one_ see why I did it?"

"I do!"

"Thanks Ames!"

"Gah! I don't care about that anymore!" Knuckles rose his voice before giving the blue hedgie a pointed look. "If _Red_ didn't do it, then who did?!"

"I'm no snitch, Knucklehead." Sonic chuckled at the echidna's enraged expression, but he knew not to push it too far. The hero bobbled his head in a certain direction. "But I think if you look over there, you'll find your answer!"

Knuckles turned to where he gestured only to be greeted by a cheeky Rouge. His teeth gritted together. " _You_ did this, bat? Why I outta-!"

" _We_ did it," Shadow interjected smoothly, watching as the echidna marched his way over to the duo, "So calm yourself down before I have to make you."

"Calm down?!" Knuckles veered off the jewel thief's course and got in the Ultimate Lifeform's face. "The Master Emerald is in _pieces_! I _can't_ be calm until it's put together again!"

"You are just going to have to wait then." Shadow gave him a warning glare, and Knuckles huffed before taking a half step back and crossing his arms. The striped hedgehog knew that the guardian was highly upset, but that couldn't be helped. "We broke the Master Emerald so Espio and Eggman will have a more difficult time collecting the gem as a whole. Some people here will protect their respective pieces."

"But _I_ can-"

"Apparently you can't, going off what happened earlier today."

That had to sting, because Knuckles went silent. There was no response to those words except the subtle clenching of fists.

Rouge looked in between the two males as she returned herself to the ground. "Now now Shadow. I called Knuckie out on being rude, do I need to do it to you too?"

"Yeah Shads," Sonic began, adding in his own opinion, "Accidents happen, am I right? Espio's sneaky! No need get all judgy!"

"I'm not _judging_ him-"

"You kinda were," Tails coughed under his breath, causing Rosy and TT to snicker.

Scarlets snapped over to the kitsune, and he smiled innocently. Shadow ignored it this time. "I'm getting him to see reason. Having the Master Emerald split is the best course of action right now."

Knuckles let out a harsh puff of air. "Fine…Fine! I'll just stress and have high blood pressure until the ME's put back together, not a problem!"

"I'm glad you see it my way."

 _That snarky little…_ Sometimes, Knuckles saw no difference in how Shadow and Sonic acted. They could both be headaches when they wanted to be.

A memory then presented itself to the echidna, and he realized that he had another bone to pick with the other him. "You know, _none_ of this would be happening right now if _Red_ had been doing his job in the first place!"

The twin let out a sigh. "What are you on about this time?"

Knuckles scowled at him. "If you had been protecting the Master Emerald, then your Eggman wouldn't have stolen it and everything would've been fine! There wouldn't be an evil chameleon running around right now!"

"Don't you _dare_ blame him!" One of the Amys defended the quieter echidna. Knuckles rose a brow, and she saw the slight confusion on his face. "Call me Rosy," she said to clarify before continuing on, "But anyway, none of this is his fault! Nothing serious happened before evil Espio showed up, so _he's_ the bad guy! Not Red!"

Rouge grinned, "Preach hon."

"Yeah!" VC pipped up, ready to speak now that the threat of being punched in the face by an echidna was much lower than it was earlier, "Just because you're mad at him for apparently not doing his job like you clearly want him to, it doesn't mean that you blame EVERYTHING that happened on him!"

"That's right!" Charmy buzzed, doing a couple of laps around the guardian before hovering in front of him. "You're being mean! Like…Like other Sonic mean!"

"Ooo…ouch." Sonic nudged Knuckles. "Now _that's_ an insult if I've ever heard of one. How 'bout just takin' a breather, yeah?"

"If it makes you feel any better," Tails said, turning around in the cockpit of his aircraft and plucking a shard out of the backseat, "I think Shadow was going to let you guard one of them." The kit threw it to the guardian, and he caught it, looking unhappy about his situation. "Right Shadow?"

The Ultimate Lifeform nodded. "So just in case you-" At the glare sent his way, Shadow stifled the urge to roll his eyes. "-or _someone_ else gets attacked and their piece stolen, Espio and Eggman will have to go through multiple others to get what they want."

Knuckles was still uncomfortable with all of this. The Master Emerald was _his_ to protect, but…he would let this plan play out. When all of this was over, then he'd get his custody back.

"I'm fine with it, _for now_." The guardian then peered over at Red. "But if I find out that you're _slacking_ -"

"Don't worry." Red drawled out, running a hand through his dreads. "Letting Espio get this is the last thing I'd ever do."

Knuckles studied him for a moment before nodding. "So," he said, searching the others with his gaze, "who all has a shard?"

Amy revealed hers from behind her back, Rouge, Sonic, and Red simply shook theirs, and Shadow gestured at his quills. Knuckles glanced down to his own piece before staring at the two sitting pretty in the plane. He frowned. This wasn't enough. There had to be more.

"I gave the other Faker one," Shadow said, and Knuckles was about to call him crazy, but a feminine voice interrupted him.

"Come on out Mephy!" Rosy said, looking at her shadow, "Knuckles isn't being a jerk anymore." She gave said echidna a dry look. "I think you're safe."

There was some hesitation before Mephiles appeared out of the ground, holding onto his jewel with shaking fingers. He knew that the people of this dimension had some bad experiences with the other him, so he was willing to do anything to get on their good side. _Especially_ Knuckles'. He'd seen Red in action, and he _did not_ want to be on the receiving end of that.

Knuckles looked at him, and the hedgehog attempted to smile. The echidna grunted out, "I don't want him having that."

"But why Knuckles?" Amy asked, giving Mephy a once over and nodding to herself before continuing, "He's not the same one we knew! I mean, you still trust our Espio even though there's an evil one out there, right?"

"But that's not the same-"

"'Course it is!" Sonic zipped over to Mephiles and draped an arm around his shoulders. The shadow hedgie relaxed a bit as a grin grew on the speedster's muzzle. This was _way_ better than getting punched. " _I_ trust him, and 'he' killed me! C'mon Knux, after all this guy's been through, he at least deserves some trust!"

"So true!" Both of the pinkette's chirped, smiling at each other.

Knuckles stared harder at Mephiles before scoffing, "Whatever. I'm not happy! But I'll live." The echidna bared his teeth. "But so help me, if you-"

"Blah blah blah!" Sonic interrupted him, giving Mephy some space, "Everyone's tired of your threats Knux! Just unwind, jeez! How're they gonna get comfortable here if you're just gonna give 'em death threats all the time?"

"Considering that they can't go anywhere, they _will_ eventually get comfortable, doesn't matter if I'm yelling at them or not! I have my concerns, dammit!"

"Whoa wait – wait a second! Rewind a little bit." VC furrowed his brow, focusing on Knuckles. "What do you mean that we can't go anywhere? Sure, I know that our Station Square might be caput, we can still go back to our own world? Right?"

The area went quiet.

The croc was starting to get worried. "RIGHT?"

The Mobians of this dimension all shared a long look. Sonic opened his mouth, about to explain, but a soft voice beat him to it. "W-We can't go back." All eyes locked on TT, and it took him a lot of effort to not hide behind his sister. He swallowed before speaking again. "After we, um…Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and I, w-went to see S-Shadow, they figured out th-that we are all created from the dreams Shadow's had… With the h-help of a Chaos emerald, s-somehow we became real. And now th-that Shadow's awake…"

Charmy summed up all of the foreigners' thoughts. "What?"

"That's pretty much it." Sonic scratched his nose. "Simplified, cuz all that other stuff can be confusin'."

"So you're saying that we are actually 'dreams come true'?" Rosy questioned, completely shocked, "But that's…That's not possible! Our world…our _home_ …is really…gone?" She turned toward the red-striped hedgehog. "Shadow?"

The Ultimate Lifeform let out a sigh. "It's true. You are all beings that my mind had fabricated, and with Penumbra's help, you were able to come here. Unfortunately, you won't be able to go back."

Red bit the inside of his cheek, his gaze focusing on Tails. "And you knew about this?" Bashfully, the kit nodded. "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

"I just wasn't thinking about it," the yellow cub answered, a guilty look on his face, "I was so preoccupied with telling you the other stuff that I just forgot." He looked at his twin. "TT took it well…"

"As long a-as I'm w-with my sister…I'm f-fine…" Rosy hugged him, still stunned about the situation.

VC ran a hand down his face. "And there goes ANOTHER curve ball thrown at us." Hearing sniffling, he glanced over to CB who was crying on the ground. "What's wrong kid? Y'know…besides the obvious…"

"We left Blaze!" The child wailed, gaining the attention of everyone else, "And now she's gone!" He sobbed and his head in his hands.

Rouge, feeling bad for the others – TT hadn't really reacted to the information, so she'd assumed everything would be fine if it was ever brought up – tilted her head. "Blaze?" Teal orbs trained on Shadow. "She was there too?"

Seeing that the native Mobians were giving him curious looks, Shadow glanced over at TT, and he shook his head. _Guess he left out that little tidbit as well._ "Technically. She was Charmy's and Silver's pet cat. She had been left behind in the other Rabbit's home when we went to fight in Station Square."

"Oh my gosh…" Amy covered her mouth in surprise. "So she's…gone too?"

Charmy's cries increased in volume. He went over and hugged Shadow tightly. "I'll never see her again! Waa! And Silver's gonna be so sad too!"

The Ultimate Lifeform's fur was dampening, and he had half the mind to push the bee away. Shadow steeled himself however and let the kid stay, knowing that this information was hard-hitting for him.

 _But out of all the options he had, he had to come to me…_

Sonic would've thought that the image of Blaze in kitten form was pretty amusing if he found out under different circumstances. He held his hands out. "Hey! I know this seems bad, but you'll like it here! And-"

The speedster was cut off when an alarm sounded in the air. Everyone glanced around, wondering where it was coming from, but then Tails hopped out of the plane and hovered back to the garage. "It's coming from my computer! It's an alert!" The kit disappeared inside it, and his voice immediately called back out, "Um guys? You need to see this!"

There wasn't any hesitation as the horde of mismatched friends packed into the garage, gathering around Tails' computer to see what was so urgent. Shadow and Sonic were right at the forefront, standing on either side of the yellow cub. All eyes took in the monitor that was showing live news from Station Square. A news station was recording from a van, camera pointed at something that was flying through the sky.

Shadow recognized it immediately, and his quills began to bristle.

"What…" Charmy hiccupped, still upset about his pet, "…is that?"

"It's Metal Sonic," Sonic answered, emerald orbs never looking way from the screen, "That's the robot I was telling you about that was with Espio up on Angel Island." The hero gave Shadow a shifted glance. "You think Espio's with 'im?"

"It doesn't look like he's carrying anyone," Shadow muttered, eyes glued to the computer as well.

"Why do you think he's here?" Tails asked, namesakes nervously swishing.

"Looking for us, maybe?" Sonic answered, unsure.

"He does seem like he's searching for someone," Knuckles commented.

Rosy frowned at the sight of those glowing red eyes. "He looks serious…"

Nothing else was said as they watched the blue mech fly around, the news van barely being able to keep up with him. There was a female talking on the video, but no one on the other side of the monitor was paying attention to her. They were all fixated on the robot in the air.

This went on for a short while until Metal seemed to focus on something in the distance. He sped up, and the vehicle following him gunned it. It wasn't long before the screen showed the mech landing on a gas station, standing behind a familiar blue hedgehog.

"This'll be interesting." Red mumbled, seeing the other Sonic stand up and face the robot.

The woman had stopped talking now, probably so that the duo's voices could be heard. They were low, but still audible.

" _Well, asshole? Are you going to do somethin' or what?"_

Exasperated sighs filled the room. Knuckles frowned, _He better still have that shard._

" _You must be the other annoying blue rodent. You are definitely not the one I have constantly fought before. It does not matter. I will get what I want anyway."_

"Definitely sounds like he's looking for you, Sonic!" Amy pointed out worriedly.

"Well," the hero furrowed his brow. "He did find me, kinda."

" _Who do you think you are, ya piece of shit?"_

Shadow frowned, realizing something. "This could be bad."

"Why do you think so hon?"

He peered back at Rouge, "That Faker doesn't know Metal Sonic. He doesn't know how _fast_ he is."

The bat pursed her lips. "That hedgehog's full of surprises though…"

" _Metal Sonic, and I need some answers. I will go through whatever measures I need to get them."_

"Answers?" Tails began, "What answers?" No one had a reply.

" _You're talkin' tough for something that's about to blow the hell up in a couple seconds. Because nobody, especially a robot, tells me what to do."_

"He's really pumping that ego, ain't he?" VC muttered.

"Y'know, I would've attacked Metal already."

Shadow gave Sonic a look.

"What? I would have!"

" _Underestimating an opponent. I assume that all blue hedgehogs share that trait."_

Knuckles couldn't help but scoff. "He's right about that."

"Hey!"

" _Don't compare me to him! I'm nothing like that irritating jackass!"_

Sonic blinked. "Wow. Well then." He glanced around. "I'm not that annoying, am I?"

"Sometimes…"

"Tails! You're supposed to be on _my_ side here!"

The kit shrugged. "You asked."

" _What are you then?"_

It clicked for the blue hero. "He knows about the doubles!" He shouted, explaining when he received looks, "If Eggman in Station Square saw the other me, and Metal Sonic saw _me_ on Angel Island, then them meeting back up would cause questions!"

"But Metal Sonic wouldn't care about that," Shadow growled out, "He's a messenger for Eggman and Espio while they stay hidden in their hideout."

"Is the other Sonic going to spill though?" Red asked, but then received his answer when the hedgie on screen figured it out as well.

Everyone in the garage then winced when he was punched in the gut and kicked off the roof.

"Is…Is he okay?" Charmy hovered in the air, actually looking concerned.

Again, the question was taken care of when the other Sonic landed on his feet, panting. Breaths were held as he dodged a quick punch before putting some distance between the two. The Sonic in the garage was contemplating going up to the city himself, but then he wanted to see what his twin could do. Also, bad guys usually told their evil plan when they think the hero was down for the count (which was really silly, especially because the hero almost always got up and kicked their evil butts), so Sonic figured that going in there would make Metal withhold important information.

Seeing Shadow's torn expression, the speedster knew he was thinking the same thing.

" _I am not playing mind games. I meant what I said before. I came for answers, and I will get them."_

" _Well you have to try harder if you plan on getting me to spill, asshole!"_

The on-screen Sonic sped away when the laser activated. Shadow watched keenly as the hedgehog ran, and almost let a satisfied smirk appear on his muzzle when Metal was spin dashed right in the head. Then he was glad that he didn't let the emotion show. The robot got right back up and started talking.

" _It is about time you finally made a move-_ "

"See!" Sonic said, "Even he knows that I-"

"Shut up," Shadow hissed.

" _-I have come to a conclusion. You are an inferior model."_

" _What in the hell did you just say?"_

The fighting pair were an arm's length away from each other now.

" _Exactly what you heard. You are nothing but a lessor duplicate. A flawed imitation. You are the failed copy of a copy."_

"Like _he_ has any room to talk," Amy huffed while Red had a sinking feeling in his stomach.

" _A copy…?"_ Sonic was dangerously close. _"I'm not a copy of anyone! If anybody's a copy, it's you!"_

"Metal is playing with his head." Red said sharply, gaining the others' attention. "He's saying those things to rile Sonic up, to catch him off guard. That robot…is too smart."

Sonic focused on Shadow. "Should we-"

He shook his head slowly. "Just wait."

" _You are nothing but second – no – third rate. You are not the hedgehog I want to destroy. Your value is not worth nearly as much, especially if you refuse to tell me what I want to hear. You are easily replaceable. There is a high chance that your double is on his way here at this very moment…"_

A panicking Shadow grabbed Sonic and teleported away just before horrified screams pierced the air.

* * *

The hedgehog pair reappeared no more than ten feet away from where Metal and Sonic were. They watched as the blue speedster slid off of the metallic hand and slumped to the ground, blood pouring out of the his abdomen. Shadow heard the one beside him gag, and while he was more immune to these types of sights, he couldn't keep the grimace off his face.

Metal, who heard Sonic's noises, turned around. His opticals flashed between the two speed demons before he grounded himself right in front of the downed Mobian, almost blocking him from sight.

 _Chaos, I need to get to him_ _ **now**_ _,_ Shadow thought, snarling at the blue mech. _But I bet that he isn't going to allow it. Dammit._

"So you are here. I was not wrong in my prediction." Metal folded his arms across his chest, making a screeching sound. "Now, I do not plan to waste any more time. If you do not tell me what I want to hear, then there is no chance of his survival."

There was a low groan from behind the bot, and Shadow should've felt relieved that the other Faker was alive, but he didn't know for how long.

"You want to know what he is, right?" Sonic yelled out, desperate. If his other self died, he would be _devastated._ Sure, he wasn't the most pleasant person to be around, but that didn't deserve death. "He's my…He's my twin brother! I know! Crazy right?"

Metal stared at him for a moment before turning and blasting the news van across the street with a laser, causing the whole thing to explode. He faced the blue and the black Mobians once more. "You are a horrible liar. Try again."

"Oh Chaos," Sonic gasped, knowing that people had been in that van.

Shadow growled under his breath. There was no point in lying. Eggman knew about the two Sonics, so it was only a matter of time before he put it together. Two dissimilar dimensions weren't that different from two timelines meeting together. "He's from a different world!" Shadow barked out, Sonic looking at him with wide eyes. "A different dimension! I'm not lying, and you know it's not impossible. You were beaten by a young Sonic. It could happen."

Metal just gazed at him for a while, not saying a word. Shadow could practically _feel_ Sonic's life slipping away. The Ultimate Lifeform's fists clenched, and he was a second away from making a mad dash when the mech spoke. "It is possible. However, if it is proven that you are lying, then the little bunny's chances of surviving are zero percent." Shadow wasn't worried about that because what he said was completely true.

The robot didn't move from his spot, and the dual hedgies were getting antsy. "I have no more questions to ask, but I do have an offer I was requested to give you." Metal didn't give either hedgehogs a chance to respond to that before he went on. "In exactly twenty-four hours, you will met up with Eggman so you can give him the _intact_ Master Emerald." The bot gestured down beside the bleeding Mobian at the shard that had loosened itself from the hero's quills. "We will return your friends _._ The location will be the northern outskirts of Central City."

 _Friends? As in more than one?_ Shadow's glare was filled with venom. "And what if we refuse?" _He could be bluffing._

"Then, in addition to the rabbit's, two more graves would have to be dug for the white hedgehog and albino bat we have captive as well." Those shocking words barely had time to register in the heroes' minds before Metal rushed them. Shadow immediately dodged out of the way, realizing that the mech wasn't even aiming for him. He glanced back to see Sonic dodging lasers as Metal gave chase.

He would wonder why, but Shadow didn't have time for that. He dashed over to the red splattered mammal and dropped to his knees, not wasting time and placing his hands right on top of the gaping hole in the hedgehog's stomach. Shadow pushed as much Chaos energy as he could into the wound, careful to not overdo it. He couldn't afford to mess up here. He had to take it slow as well, so he wouldn't make any fatal mistakes.

The Ultimate Lifeform inwardly cursed as he saw the blood stain his hands; the flow of the red liquid still leaving at an alarming rate. He couldn't change his tactic though. He had to be slow and steady and hope that the hedgehog didn't lose too much blood by the end of this. _Why did I wait? Why in the hell did I wait? I was given signs, Red outright_ _ **said**_ _it out loud! But I just selfishly watched. Of course he wouldn't be a match for Metal. This Sonic doesn't have nearly as much experience as the other one. I just sat back and watched as he ran right into a death trap._

Blazing rubies shifted their gaze from the speedster's midsection to his face, frown growing when he noticed how pale it was under the bruises. Sonic's muzzle almost had _no_ color, all of it draining to the severe open wound on his lower body. It looked like Sonic was hanging on by a thread. Shadow was then almost startled when he saw half-lidded and dull emerald eyes trained on him. The azure one was still conscious, barely, but he was. The striped Mobian was tempted to knock him out, knowing that this process was extremely painful.

"St…" Pale and cracked lips moved. "Stri…"

"Shut up." Shadow ordered quietly but sternly. "Relax hedgehog, don't exert extra energy."

Sonic heeded his command immediately, for he slipped into unconsciousness.

"That's one way to do it…" The Ultimate Lifeform breathed out, ears twitching because of the sounds of fighting behind him.

Metal Sonic let a laser fly before firing his jet pack and bolting straight for his adversary. Sonic, trying and failing to keep his mind focused on the fight at hand, cartwheeled away from the hot beam and spun at the blue mech, meeting him head on.

They bounced off each other, tumbling back towards the ground and rolling away. Sonic jumped up, muscles tensed. Green orbs flickered over to where Shadow was working, their owner's gut dropping at the sight of all of that blood. _Come on Shads…You can do it…_

"It is foolish to take your eyes off your opponent."

Sonic heard that before pain bloomed across his face, being punched on his cheek at high velocity. The speedster cried out as he flew backwards. He then came to a dead stop in mid-air when his ankle was harshly grabbed. Sonic couldn't get a shout out before he was hurled straight at the ground, the asphalt unforgiving when he crashed into it, his back bearing the brunt of the impact.

Pain reverberated throughout his system before it was replaced with pure agony when Metal flipped and brought down his heel on the hero's ribs. Sonic felt a couple crack. The robot drifted back some to prepare for another move, and Sonic almost shouted out in relief when a Chaos Spear came out of nowhere and paralyzed the mech for a moment.

The speedster sent a smile Shadow's way – even though he had went straight back to healing – before performing a breakdancing move to kick Metal far away into the side of a building. Sonic kneeled and held his chest, the movement making bones rub together that shouldn't. After taking a few deep – but not so deep – breaths, Sonic prepared himself for more extreme discomfort as he curled into himself and propelled his body Metal's way.

The robot had just gotten his systems back in working order when Sonic slammed right into him, sandwiching the mech between him and the wall. The hero didn't let up, spinning like a buzz saw against his metallic doppelganger's body. He wanted to end Metal right then and there. The bot had gone too far. Working with Eggman didn't cause much worry. But now that Espio was in the mix, Cream had been captured (along with allegedly _two_ more of Shadow's friends), and that Metal put someone in critical condition who might not make it, Sonic was pushed past his limit.

When he began to lose momentum, Sonic backed up a good distance to see the mech slightly slumped over with a huge gash in the middle of his chest. A multitude of wires were being shown. _There we go,_ Sonic thought, positioning himself to rush again, _I can get in there now and tear him up from the inside out._

However, before he could do so, another molten beam was thrown his way and he was forced to side step it, almost tripping on a crack in the ground. He watched for a split second as it destroyed some concrete before focusing back on Metal.

Or where he _would_ be. He was gone.

Sonic carefully straightened up and glanced all around, anticipating a sneak attack. There wasn't one though; Metal wasn't anywhere to be found. _Did he…Did he leave? Just like that? Not that I'm complaining, but…_ The azure rodent did another scan of the area before jogging over to Shadow, wincing at the pain in his chest. He didn't think it was fatal though, not like…

Shadow didn't look up when he heard the Faker approach, not when he was making progress. The flow of blood had slowed down marginally, but his patient was still far in the danger zone. His heart could stop beating at any moment.

"How's he holdin' up?" Sonic's voice was slightly shaky.

"Could be worse," Shadow clipped, keeping his own breathing steady as he worked, "What about you?"

"Couple broken ribs, nothin' major."

Shadow almost let out a scoff as he gave his rival a fleeting look. In any other situation, that would've been an understatement. But now, a couple broken ribs were the equivalent of a sprained ankle. If that.

"Did you destroy him?"

"Uh…He got away."

Shadow controlled his anger. The energy reacted with his emotions, and blowing Faker 2.0 up would be the opposite of what he wanted to achieve. " _How_?"

"I got distracted, but only for a split second, I swear!"

"That's all it takes with him."

They didn't speak for a while, Sonic letting Shadow work, but then other voices filled the air. It was chatter from the curious onlookers, their ramblings getting louder and louder by the second. Sonic glanced around, seeing the people look back and forth between him and the blue one on the ground.

Thinking that the noise would break the striped hedgehog's focus, Sonic suggested, "Maybe we should go back?" He bent down to pick up the discarded ME shard and dusted it off. His was safe in his quills (it was a miracle it didn't hop out). "It'll be quieter."

"Hmph. I doubt it. It'll be an uproar there too."

"But we can control _them_."

Shadow thought for a moment before sighing. "Grab my shoulder." Sonic did so, and Shadow deeply wished that teleporting wasn't going to harm the progress he had made. Once he himself was ready, the Ultimate Lifeform stopped the outflow of energy and muttered, "Chaos Control."

The trio left in a flash of light.

* * *

"Build this."

Espio gestured up at the jumbo screen in front of him which showed the blueprints of a rather useful device. The chameleon still couldn't believe that it had been so easy to hack into Eggman's main computer. An imbecile could have done a better job. Now, the reptile had everything the doctor knew at his fingertips. At the moment, he was gazing at a rather intricate shock collar. Maybe the man was planning to use this for Penumbra, but went with the electrified clip instead. Espio believed that it was quite ironic that one of Eggman's torture devices was about to be tried out on the inventor himself.

The robot he was talking to stared at the monitor, and then back at him. "I CANNOT. I DO NOT HAVE THE KNOWLEDGE TO DO SO."

Espio deadpanned. "Omega, I'm sure I programmed you be more elastic than that. If you don't know how to, then search for any builder robots you can find. I'm sure that Eggman didn't deploy _all_ of the bots he had on me."

"I DO NOT KNOW WHERE THEY WOULD BE LOCATED."

Espio sighed. "I don't know either, but look." The purple Mobian singlehandedly pressed a few buttons on the keyboard and searched for a bit; eventually the layout of the underground lab they were in popped up. "There you go. Make me proud." The chameleon walked away from the screen and toward the exit of the room. He glanced back at his mech. "If you have any questions, refer to the computer."

"I HAVE ONE, AND I DO NOT BELIEVE THE ELECTRONICAL MACHINE WOULD BE ABLE TO ANSWER IT."

Espio tapped his fingers impatiently on the door frame. "Go ahead."

"WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"

The reptile allowed a tightlipped smile to grow on his face. "To deliver some punishment." Espio turned his back on the robot. "I expect it to be ready when I come back," he called over his shoulder.

"UNDERSTOOD."

The reptile left the red and black machine, strolling down the halls of the lab, his shadow growing and shrinking every time he passed under a light fixture. He was searching for a particular door, and he knew when he was at the right one because there was a chair leaned against it in a way that the person inside couldn't escape (even though the piece of furniture was superfluous because the door was scanner locked). While he did tell Omega to stuff Eggman in a closet, he'd be lying if he said that he wasn't surprised that the man was actually trapped in one.

Espio ambled up to the door and knocked twice on it, not actually knowing if the scientist was awake or not.

"Get me _out of_ here!"

He was awake, it seemed.

"Not yet, Eggman," Espio replied, voice cold as ice, "I have to… _prepare_ some things for you before you are let free." He wasn't fazed when something slammed into the door, making it subtly tremble. Not nearly enough to get Espio to be concerned. "I would stop trying if I were you."

"You insolent reptile! I will _end_ you for double-crossing me!"

"You and what army?" Espio's only response was the other slamming into the door again. He couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him as he walked away. "Get comfy in there Eggman. You're going to be in there for a while."

"Grraaahh!"

The doctor's angry yell echoed throughout the halls, but Espio paid it no mind. He was in search of another room now, and this time, he knew exactly where it was. He traversed the layout of the structure and came across his destination quickly. The chameleon couldn't help but feel smug when the scanner read his hand. The lab was practically his now.

The metallic door slid open, and he peered inside to see the mammalian duo propped up on the far wall. Cream was taking a nap sitting up, her head on the hedgehog's shoulder. Penumbra was sitting also, apparently about nod off as well. At least Espio assumed so because those maroon irises could not be more awake as they glared at the chameleon.

Espio dug into his arm sling and pulled out the little remote. Seeing it, Penumbra let out a soft whimper, gaze turning into a pleading one. Espio disregarded the expression, making a 'follow me' motion with his hand. "Let's go."

Nummy wasted no time in gently pushing up Cream's upper body so he could get up. He scooted forwards before lying her on the ground; she grumbled a bit, but didn't rouse from her sleep. The hedgie gave her once last look as he shuffled over to Espio, who closed the door behind the striped one.

Espio smirked down at him, and black ears pinned back as Penumbra looked away, his glare aimed at the wall. "It's time to continue your training." The chameleon turned on his heel and walked off, hearing another set of footsteps behind him. "I've seen what you can do with inanimate objects and threatening robots, but let's really test your worth. Getting you to target living creatures that you _don't_ hate will truly make you the ultimate weapon." Espio glanced back at the being trailing him. "Are you understanding any of this?"

Penumbra's ears flickered, and the hedgehog gave him a heated stare. "Mean."

The reptile shook his head, lips twitching. "That I am. I'm glad that you at least have that sorted out in that brain of yours."

The pair kept walking, Espio occasionally checking back to make sure that the other hadn't wondered off. Penumbra hadn't though, following behind like a puppy. Exactly what Espio wanted him to be. A subordinate, moldable puppy.

After a couple of twists and turns, the chameleon began to slow down when he saw that a window came into view. He stopped right before he got to it and faced the hedgehog. "Here we are, your first session. However, before I let you loose in there…" Espio carefully took his broken arm out of the sling and held in front of Nummy, keeping the little remote in the hedgie's sight. "Heal me. I _know_ you can do it."

Penumbra frowned at the arm, glanced up at him, and back at the arm again. Espio didn't miss the fleeting glance over at the device in his other hand had. The striped Mobian nodded before raising his hands and gripping the limb. The two stared at each other, and for a split moment, Espio thought that he had made a horrible mistake, but then a soothing feeling spread throughout his arm. They stood still, Penumbra focusing on his job, and Espio thanking Chaos that his arm hadn't been ripped off or something similar.

When Nummy backed up, the reptile bent and rotated his arm, flexing his fingers. It was like he hadn't ever broken his arm in the first place. "Good job."

A short and guttural growl erupted from Penumbra's throat, but it didn't turn into anything more.

"Alright, now that's out of the way." Espio stepped closer to the two-way window and peeked inside of the room they were standing outside of. An amber iris zeroed in on the figure near the opposite wall. White-furred ears were drooped, the mammal's head was hanging, and there were handcuffs keeping his arms around his back. There were some around his feet too. Those cuffs were attached to a long chain connected to the floor to give the captive _some_ mobility. Lastly, there was a blindfold covering his eyes and a piece of cloth tied around his mouth so he couldn't speak.

Espio motioned Penumbra to get closer, and the hedgehog did. He followed the reptile's gaze, and his eyes widened as he pressed his hands against the glass. Penumbra's expression immediately brightened, and Espio rose a brow when a black tail began to twitch. The chameleon inwardly grinned. If this actually worked, then his day would be made.

"Listen to me," Espio started, regaining the attention of the striped one. When his words didn't work, he snapped his fingers, and eventually Penumbra looked at him. "You will _attack_ him." The smile dropped, and Espio nodded. "That's right. Attack him with all you have. If you don't…" He wiggled the remote. "You will get hurt."

Penumbra tilted his head even though he was warily eying the device. "Hurt?"

"Yes. Hurt." Espio pretended to press the button, and Nummy cringed. "I will hurt you _and_ Cream."

The ultimate weapon froze at that. He then started to shake his head, red orbs flickering from the reptile to the one inside. "No…No!" He bared his teeth, but his tough exterior was ruined when he began to look scared. "Mean! Stop!"

"You _will_ do as I say." Espio growled softly, pointing to the sliding door. "Attack him like you did those robots."

Penumbra sunk to the floor, looking pathetic. A low whine escaped his throat as he begged up at Espio with his eyes.

He just scoffed. The purple Mobian grabbed at black arm and pulled him up harshly. He pushed him toward the door. "What did I just say? _Attack_ him, or I will hurt you and Cream." Espio felt victorious when Nummy hesitantly nodded. "Okay then." He scanned his hand, and the door slid open. "Get in there."

Silver flinched when he heard a door open up from his left. He snapped his head in that direction, ears going wild. He was trying to not panic, but it was hard to when he was cuffed, blindfolded, and gagged. Despite his wishes, his breaths became quicker and shallower. The cloth he was biting wasn't helping matters, making it slightly hard to breathe through his mouth. Tears formed in the corner of his eyes when the door slid back closed.

Breaking in was a terrible idea. If he could go back in time, he would. _Chaos_ , he would…

He knew that Amy was in here (he would be absolutely _horrible_ if Espio was lying about that), but dying wasn't going to help her escape. Plus, he had dragged Rogue into it, and he didn't even _want_ to enter in the first place! Who knew where he was right now…

"Look at you. Trembling and whimpering, a total turnaround from before. Aren't you going to use your powers on me?"

That voice made his blood boil, and the whimpers turned into aborted growls. If he could see, and if his hands weren't practically useless, Espio's head would have exploded as soon as he had stepped through that door.

"No? Well that's a shame, since you will probably be missing them in a moment."

"Go to hell!" Silver tried to yell around his gag, but nothing but a garbled mess was heard.

"I couldn't catch that. I don't think it was important anyway." Footsteps went around the room, and Silver followed them until they were a good distance away. "No need to draw this out any longer. This is your punishment. Maybe you won't go breaking into anymore places in your future."

This was his punishment? Being kidnapped? Then why was the chameleon here? To talk him to death?

"Attack."

Silver's jaw unexpectedly locked up when he was suddenly uppercutted. His surprised shout was blocked by the cloth as he was lifted off the ground. Quickly thinking, he performed one action he could do. The hedgehog floated in air, trying to figure out who punched him (and attempting to ignore the throbbing in his face). Espio was on the other side of the room! Was there another-

The psychic shrieked when something sharp raked across his cheek. He felt the deep gashes and the blood that drippled out of them. He tasted copper as the liquid was absorbed by his gag. His blindfold was moistening up as well, his tears disappearing into it.

Silver then let out another shout when he was dragged out of the air. Whoever was attacking him had grabbed the chain and pulled… _hard._ His head made a sickening crack when it smashed against the tiled floor. The white hedgehog cried when his headache returned fullforce, and that turned into an agonized sob when those same things (he was guessing claws by this point) tore at his chest.

He was then grabbed by his quills and hurled in a direction. His side screamed in agony when he ricocheted off the metal surface, falling to the ground on his face. Silver grunted when there was a weight on him and let out a blood curdling scream when it felt like his back was being grated. He felt his fur getting pulled out, then his skin, then his muscles…

He smelt a metallic odor as it filled the room.

He was lying in a pool of his own fluids.

Silver's whole body was burning. It was excruciating, and he couldn't take it, so he kept screaming. The weight was off him now, but the pain was still there, so he kept screaming. As he was dragged away from the wall, he kept screaming.

He stopped when a foot stepped right in the middle of his femur. The psychic began to beg like a baby when his leg was lifted, and the force on the bone became greater. Tears were streaming down his face as he felt the unnatural tension in his leg. _Stop! Stop! Please stop!_

The deafening snap echoed around the room, and Silver's tortured wail was cut off when his voice gave out.

"Stop."

Silver let his throbbing head lay against the cold floor, feeling blood pool around him. He hurt everywhere so much that it was starting to become numb. The feeling of emptiness was creeping up on him, and he was waiting with open arms. If he was unconscious, he wouldn't be able to feel any of this. He was happy to take a break from reality.

"Heal him."

He was such a fool to believe that his suffering was over.

"Don't think we're done here Silver. I hope you're ready for round two."

* * *

Espio rubbed away a tiny droplet of blood that had managed to get on him even though he thought he was far enough from the action to stay clean. Oh well. The spot wasn't big. Hearing shuffling behind him, a yellow orb peered back to take in Penumbra's condition. The hedgehog had blood on at least fifty percent of his body, and there were chunks of…something…in those sharp quills of his. The rodent definitely was going to get hosed down after this.

Lifting his stare higher, Espio noticed that Penumbra's gaze was fixated on the floor, never looking up. His expression was blank. The chameleon shrugged before facing forward again and continuing on.

The reptile stopped at another window and haughtily waved at the male who was trembling in the far corner (his chain was just long enough for him to do so), teal irises wide in absolute terror. He must've heard Silver's shouts. Espio wasn't surprised; bats had great hearing after all.

Penumbra stepped up beside him, but he didn't look happy to see the other this time. His expression was apologetic, and his gory presence made the winged Mobian cower even more. The chameleon could see his mouth trembling against the gag.

Espio let the scanner read his hand, and gestured for the weapon to enter. "Attack." Penumbra trudged inside, and the door closed when he was clear. The chameleon figured that he'd just watch from the window. That way, he had no chance of getting dirty.

Espio frowned when he found another blood spot, wiping the tiny stain away as the screams started.

* * *

 **Next chapter…a plan is formed!**


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer- Do I own them? Nah.**

 **Warnings- A little bit bloody. Just a smidge.**

 **Chapter 21- Adventure time**

The mix-matched group of Mobians could only watch in various degrees of mortified terror as a metallic hand tore through Sonic's midsection.

Mephiles was absolutely shocked. His eyes were wide when they focused on Sonic writhing in pain on screen, a fountain of blood – among other things that he refused to name – pouring out of the speedster and onto the ground below. Mephy was frozen, hands covering his gaping mouth as panicked voices swirled around him.

"Oh my gosh!" Amy shrieked, "Is he…. I-Is he…"

Rosy was doubled over, as if she was the one impaled. "He can't die! We've already l-lost…"

"And we all just STOOD here!" VC mumbled guiltily, cheeks gaining a sickly color.

"None of us would've gotten there in time." Red tried to placate – despite looking just as contrite as the croc – and Knuckles clenched his namesakes in response.

"Sonic and Shadow would've had plenty-"

"Don't you dare blame them sugar. They were just-"

"They were doing _what_ Rouge?" The echidna rounded on her before turning to the rest of the group. "What about all of you? None of you told them to go! Yeah, he's got a bad mouth, but I don't think he deserved-"

" _None_ of us thought he deserved it." Red snapped at him, stunning the ones that knew him the most. Mephiles wasn't completely surprised however; this had _everyone's_ emotions running on high. The guardian blinked at the tone as the other refocused on the screen. "Don't forget that _you_ were watching too."

Knuckles didn't respond, and Tails' voice rung out, "They're there!" He exclaimed, words slightly shaky. The kit pointed at the monitor, and everyone quieted at the sight of Shadow and Sonic in the city.

Mephy swallowed thickly when the targeted blue hedgehog slid to the ground, landing in his own blood. _Oh Chaos no… Please no…_ He knew that he and Sonic weren't on the best of terms, but they had _some_ kind of friendship all those years ago. Mephiles couldn't forget that. If he died…

"A twin brother?" Tails breathed, wringing his hands together as the scene played out on the computer, "You could've done better than that Sonic…"

The kit had disrupted Mephy's musings, so he solely focused on the screen before nearly jumping out of his skin when a laser headed straight for them. The monitor went black.

"Wha…What happened?" CB frantically questioned, eyes watering. The shadow hedgie was surprised that the kid wasn't full out bawling. This on top of being told that his seemingly loved pet was gone was a heavy weight for a kid to bear.

The yellow cub at the forefront was typing away at the keyboard, and Mephy was hearing distressed mumblings of finding another video output.

"Should we go help them?" Rosy asked, clearly not too keen on having the hedgehogs fight that robotic monster alone.

"They can handle it, hon." Rouge soothed, frown set firmly on her face. "I don't have any doubt that they can take care of Metal Sonic, and plus," the ghost of a grin grew on her muzzle. It wasn't hard to tell that even that little display of emotion was forced. "the fight would be over before we even got there."

"That's right!" Amy agreed, giving Rosy a confident – yet trembling – smile. "My Sonic will make sure Metal is nothing but parts!"

"C-Can you find another video, Tails?" Mephiles turned his attention to TT who had scooted up beside his frazzled twin, shy sapphires swirling with worry.

The other kit furrowed his brow. "I'm…I'm tryi – Got it!" He pressed a key, and the scene popped into view, but now it was at a different angle. They had a bird's eye view of the stand-off. They couldn't hear anything but commentary and the swishing of chopper blades.

 _Helicopter cam,_ Mephy thought, hating the fact that they couldn't make out what was being said down below. He then leaned a bit forward – along with everybody in the room – when Metal took off toward the pair of hedgehogs on the ground. The shadow hedgie inaudibly sighed in relief when Shadow jumped out of the way and immediately went over to help Sonic, but Mephiles bit the inside of his cheek when the other azure hedgehog was reined into combat with the robot.

He winced when the hero's chest was assaulted, and VC echoed his thoughts, "That's gonna leave a mark…" Mephiles' emotions were all over the place during the fight, thankful that Shadow helped out, happy that Sonic was cutting through the mech, and then shocked and a bit angry when the robot got away. That robot shouldn't be just roaming around wherever if it was so easy for him to ki… _hurt_ someone.

This place's Sonic was standing by Shadow now, obviously in pain but not showing it. Reptilian green irises flickered over to where the other hedgehog was laying and being healed by Shadow, but then they returned back to the standing hero. Mephiles just thought how amazing how the two lookalikes were so…different. Sure, the personality of Red and Knuckles were on two opposite sides of the spectrum, but the two Sonics' were _nowhere_ near each other. The only similarity was that they both helped people…and that was stretching it a bit.

 _I wonder if the one here could talk some sense into him?_ Mephiles inwardly questioned before dismissing that thought. _From what we were told, there's a huge rift between the two Sonics already. The only hope we have is Shadow, and the relationship between those two are rocky at best. Maybe…Maybe just being in this world would change him for the better? We all are stuck here…_

"How long is it gonna take to heal him?" CB asked quietly, all eyes on the red-striped 'hog working on the unconscious speedster.

Rouge put a hand on her hip. "A while. An injury like that takes focus and concentration to heal. Shadow will have to take it slow and steady."

There was a short pause until Rosy spoke up, "Are they…going to stay there then? Maybe we should-" The words caught in her throat when there was a bright flash of light on screen. When it disappeared, the trio of rodents were nowhere to be seen. "-nevermind."

The same flash of white came from outside, and all heads snapped in that direction. "They're back!" Amy shouted, and she was the first to dash out of the garage, the others in tow.

Sonic turned around as soon as he heard footsteps, wincing at the sharp pain in his chest. He was gonna have to take care of his ribs soon before the injury worsened. But the other him had to get better first. His life was literally on the line.

The azure hedgie put a finger to his mouth to keep the approaching group quiet. The last thing he wanted to happen was for Shadow to lose focus and make their situation worse. Sonic went up to them before they got too close.

Tails was standing right in front of him, blue irises trained on the forming bruise on his chest. "Are you alright Sonic?" He whispered, concern laced within his words.

"I'm okay lil' bro," Sonic said with a smile, ruffling the cub's bangs while tossing the shard in his other hand up and down. "Don't need to worry, just a few broken ribs."

"Broken ribs, and you're _okay_?" Knuckles narrowed his eyes in disbelief. "That is not _okay._ "

Sonic's smile melted a bit as he glanced over to his other self on the ground, pale and covered with blood. "Compared to him I am." The hero saw all of the worried expressions on the multitude of faces and held his hands up to get the attention back onto himself. "It's alright guys! Just give Shads some time, he'll fix cranky me right up!"

Rouge took a step towards the working Ultimate Lifeform, but she didn't get any closer than that. "How is he looking over there, sugar?" She asked, throwing her question over to Shadow, "Is he in the clear?"

"Give me another minute, and he might be." The striped hedgie responded, hands glowing as they lightly pressed down on the open wound.

Mephiles couldn't look. He had turned away from the sight, not able to look at the hedgehog's red body. It reminded him too much of…too much of… The shadow Mobian gagged, covering his mouth when the threat of something coming up became very real. Pink suddenly filled his vision; it was Rosy asking him if he was alright. Her green eyes were filled with empathy. Mephy wiped his mouth and nodded, just managing a smile.

"We missed some conversation between you and the bot when he…shot the van." Mephiles turned back around at the sound of VC's voice. He caught a glimpse of Sonic sending a fretful look his way before the hedgehog focused on the croc. Mephy tried to avoid looking Shadow's direction as the reptile continued. "We didn't hear what was said the rest of the fight. Did he say anything about Eggman…or Espio?" The latter's name was nearly growled out.

Sonic's gaze softened in comprehension, and he rubbed his arm. His expression was hard to read. It was a mixture between concern, uncertainty, and a bit of anger. The speedster let out a long sigh. "I was wondering why you guys weren't…bringing it up."

"Bringing what up?" Red asked, a small frown marring his muzzle.

Sonic ran a hand down his face, and Mephiles braced himself for the worst. In the short time he had been with the hero, he hadn't seen the other look so distressed. This had to be heavy news. The blue Mobian rubbed the back of his neck. "Metal told us that along with Cream, they…" He glanced over the group again, focusing more on the ones Mephy had been friends with. "They have Silver and Rou – uh, Rogue."

 _Oh no!_ Mephiles thought frantically, eyes widened to their fullest. Hearing a gasp, he turned to Rosy who had tears that threatened to spill. "They have…S-Silver _and_ R-Rogue?" Sonic slowly nodded, and wetness streamed down her cheeks. "Espio's gonna kill them!" She yelled, beginning to hyperventilate.

TT went over and hugged her, trying to calm her down even though his bottom lip was trembling. "H-He might not…"

"Might not?" VC sat on the ground, holding his head in his hands. He then pounded the ground with his fist. "Espio has EVERY reason to… They – we _all_ – actively tried to stop him! And now that they are in his clutches-!"

Rosy cried harder, and Red messaged his temples, shooting the croc a weak glare. "You really aren't helping here."

Before VC could respond, CB let out a heart-wrenching wail, rubbing his wet face. "S-Silver! He's gonna _die!_ First Blaze, and now him! _Waa!_ " Instead of going to Shadow this time, the bee launched himself at a distraught Mephiles, who hugged the bee in earnest.

Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, Tails, and Rouge looked upon them feeling sympathetic. They saw themselves when they first found out that Cream had been taken. This was even a worse situation. Cream was a child, and Espio may have given her mercy, but Silver and Rogue…that chameleon could do anything to them.

"Are you…are you s-sure that he wasn't bluffing?" Rosy stuttered out.

The blue hero nodded. "Metal can do a lot of things," Sonic peered back at his twin, a little bit of happiness bubbling up when he saw the flow of blood slowing drastically. He returned his attention to the group, and that good feeling was gone again. "but he doesn't lie. He doesn't have it in him." He let out a single chuckle. "Literally. I don't think Eggman programmed him to lie." His grin drooped when his lame excuse for a joke didn't lighten anyone's mood.

"Did Metal tell you what's going to happen to them?" Red, the most composed foreigner at the moment, asked, his fists subtly clenched. "Or that they just had them?"

A tiny smile grew on Sonic's face, and no one had any idea what it meant. "Good news or bad news first?"

"Um…g-good?" TT suggested, wiping away some of the wetness from his cheeks.

Sonic clapped his hands, the green shard held under his armpit. "Okay! Good news is that Eggman and Espio are willing to give Silver, Rogue, _and_ Cream back to us." That caught the attention of everyone.

"We're getting Cream back?" Amy gasped, joy lighting up her green orbs. "Yay! She can come home!"

CB peeled himself away from Mephiles. "And S-Silver and Rogue are gonna be free?"

Before he could feel any type of happiness, Knuckles interrupted, "Wait a second. Before we get too happy…" He eyed Sonic. "What's the bad news?"

"They want the Master Emerald in exchange for them." A different voice answered, and wandering gazes zeroed in on Shadow, who was looking over in their direction. The hole in Sonic's abdomen was almost completely gone. Sharp scarlets focused solely on Knuckles. "That, or they die."

The echidna's body froze at those words. He felt the inquiring gazes on them, thinking that he was trapped between a rock and a hard place. If they handed the Master Emerald over, _who_ knew what Eggman and _Espio_ would do with it. But on the other hand… Knuckles crossed his arms and let out a puff of air. A couple of stares looked worried. The guardian frowned. "I hope you didn't think that I would say no. I'm not heartless, but dammit…"

Smiling, Rouge put a hand on the red one's shoulder and squeezed. "Don't worry about it Knuckie. We'll get the beauty back right after we get those three safe and sound. Isn't that right Blue?"

"Course!" Sonic chirped, giving her – and everybody else – a thumbs up. "And I got a plan!"

"Already Faker?" Shadow muttered from his spot.

"Did you really expect anything less, Shads? I _am_ the fastest thing alive!"

The Ultimate Lifeform snorted.

Sonic ignored him in favor of attempting to cheer the others up (although their recovery had started when Knuckles had agreed). "Okay, so in a little less than a day, they want us to meet up with Eggman near Central City to make the trade-off. Everything's gonna be fine even though they have the emerald, because _we_ will know where their base is! All we need to do is swoop in, take back the rock, and dip."

"And rough Espio and Eggman up a bit, right?" VC spoke up.

Sonic grinned his signature grin. "Can't forget about that part! But anyway, to make sure that goes off without a hitch, I say that we need a little help from the Chaos emeralds."

"The Chaos-" Tails started before understanding, "You want to collect all of the Chaos emeralds?"

"You nailed it on the head Tails! If Shads and I, heck, and the other me and Silver too if they feel like it, go Super and rush in and out, they won't know what hit 'em!"

"Wait…" CB breathed out, mood slowly lifting. There were stars in his eyes now, his expression filled with awe. "Silver can turn Super?!" The bee did a couple flips in the air. "That's awesome!" Then he stopped, head drooping some. "If only Blaze could see it…" Mephiles patted him sympathetically on the back.

"I never…" Rosy sniffed before taking a deep breath, figuring that everything's going to turn out okay for them. "I never knew he could do that either…" She glanced over to the red-striped hedgie. "And you can do it too Shadow?" Said Mobian nodded, focusing on finishing up the healing job.

"D-Don't you…" TT said softly, wanting to go back to the topic of emeralds. "Don't y-you need the emeralds to w-work if you want to go Super?"

"Yeah!" Tails agreed, being reminded of something, "And we need them to be on so they can be found, Sonic!"

"The emeralds don't work?" Red questioned with a brow raised. He was sitting on the ground now, chin resting in an open palm.

"Nope." The hero dug into his quills and pulled out the former light blue Chaos emerald, now dull and lifeless. "They've been out for a while. Shads has one also. They're both caput, and we're sure that the rest are too."

"Can NOTHING go right for us? Just once?" VC complained, letting out a sigh. "Why the heck don't they work?"

"The Master Emerald shut them down." Knuckles retorted. The croc was about to ask why again, but the echidna elaborated before he got the chance to. "I don't know why though. It _might_ be because of all of you coming to our world, but anything could've caused it to shut them down."

"Well…can't you just tell it to boot them back up?" Amy suggested, "It can't be too hard!"

"There's a _reason_ the Master shut them down, and I'm not going to force it to activate them." Knuckles stated with finality. "Until we find the exact reason why, I'm not chancing it." Rouge rolled her eyes, and he cut her off before she could start. "Nothing you say will get me to change my mind, bat!"

" _Chaos_ , you're really stubborn." Red grunted out, giving him a pointed look. "I get where you're coming from, but isn't taking care of the bad guy more important? If you won't do it, I will."

Knuckles obviously didn't expect that, for complete shock was etched into his features. Tails glanced in between the two echidnas, lips pursed. "You two are the same person, so technically…it could work."

The guardian's surprise quickly turned into protective rage. "He is _not_ even going to _try_! The Master Emerald is _mine_ not _his_!"

The grating smirk on Sonic's face made his teeth grind together. "Then are _you_ going to do it, Knucklehead?"

"No!"

"Then I will." Red leaned back on his hands. "Simple as that."

"What a dilemma you're in, hon." Rouge grinned at Knuckles, and the echidna was starting to feel cornered. "Either you comply, or…you give up your job. Which will it be?"

The guardian glared at her before snapping, "Fine! I'll do it, but don't come whining to me if something goes wrong!"

"I'm so glad you decided to do it." Red yawned, lethargically scratching his side. The last few hours had been emotionally draining, and his energy was at an all-time low. "Because I probably would've dropped as soon as I started the process."

Knuckles gaped. "So all of that was a front?!"

"Sure was."

"And you can't take back your words!" Sonic singsonged.

Knuckles muttered angrily under his breath before hissing out, "Give me all the stupid shards…"

Rouge handed him hers and pinched his cheek. "Come on sugar, don't be upset." Her hand was batted away, but she only relocated it to the echidna's furrowed brow. "Relax! You really don't want stress lines honey."

Knuckles took a step away from her, his glare contradicting the flush surrounding his nose. "Why do you just annoy me huh? He's right there!" He gestured to his twin, and Rouge gave the doppelganger a once-over before answering.

"I get more reaction out of you, with him, I'd get bored within seconds." She smiled over at Red. "No offense hon."

The echidna waved her off. "None taken."

"If you two love birds are done," Sonic started, emerald irises glinting with mirth. He continued over Knuckles' sputtering, handing over both shards that he had in his possession. "Get to building buddy!"

Resisting the urge to throttle Sonic and a specific bat – was it _really_ that funny? – Knuckles carefully placed the pieces he had on the ground, waiting to complete the set. One was suddenly in the air in front of him, and he was swift enough to catch it. The guardian placed it on the pile while giving his twin a mean look that didn't seem to be working.

Amy strolled over to give him her piece, and behind her was Mephiles. He was holding out the shard delicately, avoiding eye contact. Knuckles' expression softened. Mephiles didn't look evil, and he hadn't done anything wrong… The guardian gingerly took the Master Emerald piece. "Thanks."

He was rewarded with a meek smile, and then Tails shouted out, "I'll get the ones from the Tornado!" The kit hovered in the air and flew over to the passenger seat. He gripped the two shards before going over and handing them to Knux. "Here you go! Is that all of them?"

"No." Shadow's voice answered for the red Mobian. Eyes swiveled to take in the striped hedgehog making his way over toward the green pile. Shadow took his bloody gloves off and crumpled them into one hand; he grabbed the Master Emerald shard in his quills with the other. "Here."

Knuckles peered past him over to the red spattered hero on the ground, taking the sliver. "Are you done with him?"

Shadow crossed his arms, nose scrunching up at the dirtied gloves in his possession. "Yes. The hole isn't there anymore."

"Is he…going to wake up soon?" Rosy warily eyed the downed speedster, glad that he wasn't in danger of dying, but now the anticipation of his nasty attitude was taking over. She _really_ didn't feel like dealing with him at the moment.

"Eventually," Shadow retorted. _And who knows what he'll do when he does,_ he mentally added.

"Aw hon," Rouge cooed, seeing that the unconscious hero was in the best condition she had ever seen him in, "You even took care of the little stuff he had. That's nice of you." Hopefully the blue one would had at least _one_ appreciative bone in his body.

Shadow just grunted as a response.

"Now that we can stop worryin' about the jerk…" VC gestured to the heap of shards, the rest of his sentence unneeded.

Knuckles nodded at him before closing his eyes and focusing. The group around him stayed quiet as the echidna stood there, relaxing himself. The Master Emerald had already attached two pieces of itself together on its own, but with the echidna's influence, the shards were fitting together rapidly, little flashes of green light going off every time there was a connection.

When the impressive Master Emerald was put back together, a soft viridescent glow covered all that was nearby, slowly pulsating. Knuckles let out an airy sigh as his amethyst orbs focused on his most prized possession. "There it is."

Sonic made a 'go on' motion with his hand. "Keep on goin' Knux! You're not done yet!" The dull cyan emerald was in his grip, and Shadow pulled out his own darkened red jewel.

"I know!" Knuckles growled, throwing his doppelganger a vexed look. He then calmed himself down, knowing that this took a lot of concentration, and held his arms out. He began to mumble under his breath, and the ME glowed brighter, almost becoming harmful to look at.

Mephiles squinted but didn't want to look away from the breath-taking sight. He thought that Chaos emeralds were a sight for sore eyes, but this was on a whole different level. The shadow hedgie's gaze then switched over to Knuckles when a frown appeared on his muzzle and his body tensed up. The guardian's namesakes were clenched now; it was obvious that he was going through some kind of strain.

Then the Chaos emeralds flickered to life.

Surprised and happy gasps sounded at the small gems' activation, but an explosive puff of air muffled them as Knuckles sunk to the ground, slightly panting.

"Are you alright?" Rouge reached out for him, but stopped when he returned to his feet by himself.

The guardian took a deep breath before lightly patting the Master Emerald. "It _really_ didn't want me to turn them back on. That's the most the ME's ever fought back."

"But you are okay though, right?" Tails approached him, lips twitching downwards. "It looked like that took a lot out of you!"

"I'm fine Tails," Knuckles mollified, "Just a little winded."

"That would've probably killed me…" Red murmured in relief. He most likely would've given up halfway through.

"Glad it's nothin' serious!" Sonic smiled over at him before refocusing on the glistening jewel in his hand. "And glad that it worked!" The blue blur went over and playfully nudged Shadow. "We're back in business Shads!"

"It seems that we are…" Shadow responded distractedly, attention split between Sonic's words and the pleasant feeling of energy he was _much_ more familiar with flowing throughout his system. The Ultimate Lifeform flickered his scarlet orbs over to Sonic's bruising chest, knowing that the speedster needed healing. The deed was done in less than a minute.

The hero glanced down at his healed chest and gave an appreciative smile. He then focused on the red stained gloves his rival had. "Y'know, I've got clean gloves inside if you-" His words hung in the air when Shadow disappeared in a flash. Sonic had to resist rolling his eyes. "He could've at least waited until I finished!"

Rouge scoffed, "Now you know how we feel, Blue."

Rosy watched the interaction with a small smile. "If only our Sonic acted like him," she said softly so only the ones near her could hear, "then I'd maybe-"

There was a glint in Amy's suddenly stony orbs. "You'd what?" She asked a little too innocently. "Blue still isn't your color, _right_?"

The other pinkette forced a laugh, knowing she was doomed if she didn't save herself. "I'm not really going for _him_ , remember?" She attempted to appease her twin while keeping it as secret as possible. A dull pang went off in her chest when she was reminded of the situation the bat was currently in. "I was going to say that I'd maybe be friends with two cool blue heroes instead of one!"

That seemed to do the trick, for Amy's expression became genuine. "He is pretty cool, isn't he?"

Rosy chuckled. "Definitely."

TT gave his sister an odd look, wondering what she was talking about. 'I'm not really going for him'? What did that even mean? And who was she going for?

The little fox's train of thought screeched to a halt when Sonic let out a whoop, done with trying to come up with an excuse to why he would sometimes dash away without any warning. "Let's get this show on the road! Tails!" Said yellow kit perked up when his brother turned to him. Sonic flashed his pearly whites. "Don't ya have a little tracker we can put to use lil' buddy?"

Tails smiled right back at him. "Sure do!" The pilot went over and hopped into the cockpit of the Tornado. After pushing a couple of buttons, a screen uncovered itself on the dashboard. "Now that the emeralds are back online…" He stuck his tongue out the corner of his mouth, flicking a few more switches. He beamed when a couple dots began to flash on the small monitor. "We can zero in on their locations!"

CB was suddenly beside him, his buzzing wings creating a tiny draft. The bee tapped his chin. "But wait…isn't it only showing Sonic and Shadow's emeralds? Aren't there more out there?"

"Well yeah," Tails answered before explaining, "The tracker can only detect ones nearby, but with the help of one emerald, the range is _exponentially_ bigger! With two, there's nowhere on the planet they can hide!" The cub boasted, clearly proud of his work.

"Pretty impressive," Red commented, fingers linked behind his head.

VC nodded. "Got that right! That'll make getting them a whole lot easier."

"Gotta love that brain of yours Tails." Sonic snickered, tossing his gem up to the kit. He glanced to his left when Shadow reappeared with clean gloves covering his hands. He bobbed his head up at the pilot. "Toss the emerald up to him Shads. Gotta find the rest of its bros."

Shadow did so, knowing that it would be returned to him in a short while. "Thanks!" Tails said as he caught it and brought the two close to the tracker. He was quiet for a moment as the range expanded. "Okay, it's showing that-"

His voice suddenly cut off, and Knuckles furrowed his brow. "Want to finish your sentence, Tails?"

"I uh…" There was something off with the kitsune's tone, and confused glances were exchanged on the ground. Tails blinked before training his gaze on the guardian, looking truly baffled. "I think I know why the Master Emerald shut them all down, Knuckles."

"What?" The echidna took a step closer. "Well why?"

"There's…There's eight of them!"

"Eight…" Knuckles gaped, "Eight _Chaos emeralds_?! Why – _How_?"

Sonic whistled lowly, tapping his foot on the ground. Even he seemed hopelessly confused. "Yeah, that's probably why the rock didn't…want to…" He turned to a surprised Shadow. "Do you have any idea how the heck that happened? And if it'll mess anythin' up?"

"I have no idea." Shadow's muscles were tense, mind in a whirlwind. "On both accounts."

"I mean…" Amy stared at the emeralds that Tails was holding. They seemed perfectly fine. "They aren't freaking out, so maybe that's a good sign?"

"You feel anything off with them?" Teal irises pinned on the Ultimate Lifeform.

"No." To Shadow, the energies felt normal…for now.

"So. Okay." Sonic scratched his nose, pursing his lips. "This looks like a 'later' problem. Since nothing extreme is happening right now like the world cracking apart or something, I think we should work on the 'now' problem."

"Are you _serious?_ " Knuckles waved his arms frantically in the air, and the foreign Mobians nervously looked at each other, prepared to take a step back if the echidna went on a rampage. "Eight Chaos emeralds, Sonic! _Eight!_ There's only supposed to be seven! If this doesn't scream urgent, I don't know what does!"

The azure speedster just shrugged his shoulders. "Shads isn't freaking out, and he's in tune with this sorta stuff." When that didn't calm the guardian down, Sonic went over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Listen Knux, we're gonna find 'em all, and when we do, we'll figure somethin' out. 'Kay?"

Knuckles scowled. "I have half the mind to shut them back down…"

"Don't," Shadow said, voice firm, "Like Faker pointed out, I don't feel any abnormalities, and everything seems fine." He wouldn't say this out loud, but he wanted the emeralds activated for selfish reasons also. He felt complete with a glowing gem within arm's reach. "We're leaving them the way they are."

Knuckles gritted his teeth, but didn't object.

"What happens if there is an eighth one?" VC wasn't nearly as knowledgeable about the emeralds as the others.

Sonic shrugged again. "Who knows? This is the first time we're had this problem." He placed his hands on his hips. "How the heck did it get here in the first place?"

There was a short pause, then: "Penumbra." Heads swiveled toward Red, and he nodded. "He had a Chaos emerald when he Chaos Controlled us here. He must have brought it with him…if that's possible."

"What happened to him?" Shadow asked, reminded that he hadn't been shared this information.

CB pointed over to the other Sonic who was still splayed out on the ground. "He was supposed to get Nummy out a cage he was trapped in up in snowy mountains!"

"White Acropolis," Tails provided.

"Yeah! But Sonic said that he wasn't there anymore!"

"Wasn't there…?" Shadow gave the downed hedgehog a sharp glance. He then zeroed in on the fox in the cockpit. "Is there an emerald near White Acropolis?"

"Yeah…" Tails answered, "I know you probably want to go there yourself, but there are other emeralds that are farther than that, and we only have a day…"

 _Dammit. Technically less than a day now. We have to use our time wisely._ "You're right." Shadow huffed. "Where are the others?"

The kit began to list. "There's one in Metal City, Mazuri, Spagonia, Casino Park, we already know about White Acropolis…" Tails zoomed in on the map. "And there's one probably in the middle of the lake a good few miles north of Station Square." He glanced up. "If we all split up, I think we can do it. I can whip up crude trackers in no time!"

"I can get the one in Mazuri." Shadow immediately uttered.

Rouge fluttered her wings in muted excitement. "Ooo Shadow! We should go visit Casino Park too! We haven't been there in _so_ long." The Ultimate Lifeform didn't question how the bat just decided to lump them two together in a group; he expected it.

"I can take Metal City and Spagonia." Sonic jogged in place a bit. "I have a feeling that I might have to bargain with a certain bird." He chuckled before focusing on his little bro. "You're in charge of the Acropolis Tails, I'm countin' on ya! Make sure to pick Penumbra up if you see him!" The kit gave him a thumbs up. Sonic's gaze then landed on the echidna. "Hey Knux, can you go with 'im? Gotta have some power to back up that brain of his." The hero laughed at the almost-pout on the kit's face. Knuckles just puffed, and Sonic snorted. "I'll take that as a yes."

"There's one a couple miles north of the city…?" Rosy thought for a moment before making up her mind; she could go for a little adventure, and she was sure that they would pass by the Chaotix's place on the way! "I can get that one!" She claimed, surprising some. "And I can get the other Charmy, Vector, and Espio to help!" _Hopefully they'll be back from their job…_ The pinkette turned to her twin. "You wanna come with?"

Amy gave Sonic a fleeting glance before smiling. "Sure! It'll be fun!" Her gaze shifted over to the buggy parked over by the house. "I'm sure it won't be hard to steer that thing…can't be any harder than a bumper car…"

"I'm coming too!" CB buzzed, "I want to see my other self again!"

Sonic tilted his head. "You've met the Chaotix already?"

VC nodded. "Right before we met up with your Tails. They were cool. Thank _Chaos_ , because I don't know if I could've handled another one of _our_ Espios."

That sentiment was shared throughout the clearing.

"Well, I guess that they can have a fishing rod or something." Rouge commented, flicking a speck of dirt off of her jumpsuit.

Rosy glanced over at her brother and beamed. "It'll be great for you to meet-" Her face fell when she saw the anxious look on TT's. She was confused for a slight moment before it became clear. _It's because of Espio. He's not ready to meet him yet._ "It's okay if you don't want to go. Do you want to stay here?" TT hesitantly shook his head, and the pinkette's smile came back. _He wants adventure too, huh? Well…_ "Who do you want to go with?" _I have to let him go sometime._

The kit's eyes widened before he slyly glanced over at his doppelganger.

Rosy snickered. "Then it's settled! Tails, can he come with you?"

"Sure!" The fox grinned, and his twin gave a smaller one back. "You don't mind Knuckles, right?" The guardian was still grumping. Tails rubbed the back of his neck. "I'll take that as a no."

Sonic chortled before training his emerald orbs on VC, Red, and Mephiles. "What about you guys?"

"Going out seems fun and all, but I'm just going to stay here." The croc jabbed his thumb over his shoulder. " _Somebody's_ gotta make sure Vanilla's safe, am I right?"

"I'm going to have to follow his lead with that one." Red stretched his back. "You all can-"

"Oh _no_ you don't." Over his silent treatment, Knuckles marched over and pointed at his twin's chest. "All that _you're_ going to do is sleep, and that's not going to cut it!"

"Especially if we're leaving the Master Emerald here." Shadow cut in.

"Exactly that! Because – Wait what?" Knuckles whirled on the Ultimate Lifeform. "We aren't leaving it here!"

Shadow rose a brow. "Then where are we going to leave it?"

"I can-"

"No." Shadow sighed. "We can leave it here. I know who can protect it while Vector is keeping an eye on Vanilla."

Knuckles narrowed his eyes. "Who?"

"Omega. Espio's trick won't work on him if the chameleon decides to invade for whatever reason."

Red was shocked to hear that name. "Omega? The robot? But-"

"I know what you're thinking," Shadow elaborated, "This Omega is a good ally to have. He won't attack you."

"H-He better not man." VC swallowed thickly, questioning his choice to stay. "I don't feel like getting shot today!"

Knuckles backed off, seeing the logic, but he wasn't happy with it. "If I come back and see _one_ scratch-"

Sonic shook his head in exasperation. "Back at it again with the threats Knux…"

"I don't care!" Knuckles interrupted him, turning back to Red. "Back to you, you're _definitely_ not staying now. You're going. In fact, you're coming with Tails, TT, and me so I can-"

Red held up a hand. "I'm going to stop you there. If I'm going anywhere, it's with them." He pointed over towards Rouge and Shadow, both not expecting that decision. "You won't be there to nag me, Sonic won't be there to talk me to death. No offense." Said hedgie stuck his tongue out at him in jest. "And I don't want to lead for any amount of time." He finished, referring to Rosy's group. "Again, no offense."

"I don't know why I expected more from you." Rosy sighed out.

Knuckles' face matched his fur. " _You-!_ "

"Calm down Knucklehead!" Sonic admonished, "I mean jeez! The other me's got you beat, but just barely! He can go wherever he wants!" Knuckles reverted to 'grump' mode again, and Sonic focused on the last of the trio. "Now that's over, what about you Mephy? Feelin' lazy, or you feel like stretchin' your legs?" Mephiles didn't answer at first, severely indecisive. He could stay safe here, or go out and see the sights. Both sounded inviting.

Sonic saw how wishy-washy he was, and he planted a welcoming grin on his face. "Hey, I'm goin' solo here pal. I think you can keep up with me, so ya wanna come? Spagonia's _great_ , I'm sure you'll love it!"

Mephiles couldn't really say no. This hedgehog as safe and fun to be around, and he had to admit, shadowing someone going at high speeds was pretty entertaining. Mephy nodded.

The hero's grin stretched even wider. "That's the spirit! Alright!" His gaze swept the area. "Now that everyone knows where to go and what to do-"

Sonic's jaw snapped closed when he heard groaning behind him.

Everybody gave their attention to the hedgehog on the ground who was slowly waking up. Heavy eyelids blinked open, and unfocused emerald irises roamed aimlessly.

"Not everyone…" Red muttered.

Sonic's ear twitched, hearing that, and his grin melted into a smirk. "My twin can come with me."

Hazy green orbs snapped over in his direction.

"…the f-fuck?"

* * *

Metal Sonic zoomed down the halls of the underground lab, needing repairs as soon as possible. The wires sticking out of his chest were a safety hazard, mostly for him. One snag and his systems could shut down. He should have been more careful when fighting that irritating copy. He should have _finished_ him back there, but no. He had failed again. He had only managed to harm the other, nothing like he wanted. Metal _needed_ that rodent's bleeding body at his feet.

Well…it wasn't like he _hadn't_ achieved that goal today, because he had. It was just the wrong blue annoying copy. The copy's copy.

All things considered however, Metal knew that the fight could have been much worse. If the Ultimate Lifeform had decided to join the fight, the robot didn't know if he'd be flying around right now. Also, he guessed that he could call the information he received interesting. He wouldn't have ever deduced alone that the double had come from a different dimension. How peculiar.

This situation was turning out like what the Ultimate Lifeform had described. However, instead of a Sonic from another time period, this Sonic was one from another world. Hm. No matter. Metal would insure that he would _not_ be the one destroyed by the end of this. He would ki-

The blue mech slowed down his boosters once he realized that he had passed by something that called his attention. Metal pivoted midair and went back the way he came at a decreased speed. The robot eventually arrived at the spot that caused him to back track. It was worth the distance.

He was staring through a window, seeing how blood was spattered everywhere like a toddler was given a paintbrush and was told to do whatever they wanted. There was red on the walls, on the floor, and there was some on the glass, congealing against the clear surface.

Metal's opticals then took in the bound figure laying on the floor. There were slashes all over his body, and he was covered in bruises. One of his arms were slightly bent the wrong way. The bat was immobile, and the mech believed for a moment that the winged mammal was dead. That was until Metal saw the minute movement of the male's chest. Glowing red eyes then trailed over to observe the bat's face. Circuits whirled as the mech cocked his head. The Mobian's eyes where half-mast and dull, almost grey. They were staring right at the window, but not quite where Metal was standing.

An artificial feeling – one that Metal labelled as curiosity – made him raise his metallic fist and knock on the glass. Two…Four…Six seconds ticked by before those blue orbs drifted over to actually see the robot. There was no reaction. The bat's face was blank. Hopeless.

Metal believed that this was apt punishment.

He flew off.

It wasn't long before he came across the other trespasser.

The room was in the same shape, and the white hedgehog sitting in the middle of the floor was in no better condition than the bat. There was no strand of fur that had remained its original color. It was like the rodent had bathed in carmine color dye. The blood was more concentrated where chunks of quills had been forcefully pulled out. His forehead, back of his head, and his back had seeping bald patches.

Metal knocked on the glass and received a reaction this time.

The psychic screamed around his gag and frantically backed away from the noise as fast as he could possibly manage. He quickly hit a wall and curled up as best as he could in the position he was in. Wetness dripped from the blindfold on his face, the clearness of the tears lightening the shade of the blood. Some, but not much. The rodent's whole frame was trembling violently, uncontrollable whimpers escaping the obtrusive cloth.

It was clear that they had learned their lesson.

Metal left for the main office, knowing that he would find Espio there.

His words rung true, for the chameleon was lounging in Eggman's wheeled and cushioned chair, gazing up at the large monitor in front of him. When the mech grounded himself, the reptile swiveled around and hummed when he saw the other's condition. "I would ask how it went, but I can tell that it probably didn't go well."

"I need repairs," Metal said, wanting to get fixed immediately. They could save the small talk for later.

"Just wait a minute." Espio interlocked his fingers and propped his chin upon them. He was turning a bit back and forth in the chair with his foot touching the ground. "Mission report."

Red opticals flashed. "I am not yours to command."

Espio let out a sigh. "I'm not commanding you to do anything. I just want to know what happened, then you can be taken care of." When Metal didn't respond, the chameleon's stare hardened marginally. "At least tell me that you fulfilled my request."

"I did." Metal's monotonous voice echoed around the room.

The purple Mobian harshly pushed air out of his nose, growing irritated when the mech didn't expound. "You're killing me here, Metal." Espio shifted, crossing his legs at the ankle. "What's the point of withholding information? Other than being stubborn."

"To show that we will always be equals, and that you will not treat me like Eggman has."

"Equals help each other out, you know. We're fighting on the same side. We have the same goal. You doing this is only prolonging it."

Espio had to resist the urge to smirk when the robot finally spilled. "I told them about the trade. I assume that they will go through with it."

"They have to if they don't want their friends mailed over in body bags. What about the information on the doubles?"

Metal glanced down when a line of static jumped from wire to wire. He spat the answer out. "The blue hedgehog I fought was obscene and very easy to target when angry. I was told that he was from a different dimension."

"A different…dimension?" Espio blinked, severely caught off guard. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I did not detect any false truths."

The chameleon leaned back in the chair, letting the mech's words sink in. A different dimension…It was clear that the Sonic Metal had ran into was the one that Espio knew. The reptile's mind went back to their trip to Angel Island, picturing the azure hero they had seen. That was a completely different Sonic. The one whose home was…here? But that didn't make any sense.

The 'nice' Sonic should be the visitor here, not the other one… _if_ in fact the dimension hopping was true. It was too ridiculous to be made up. It had to be what was going on, but why would the foul-mouthed Sonic be the foreign one? It just didn't…

Then everything clicked.

The odd behaviors, the 'amnesia', the false pretenses…they were because Espio wasn't where he thought he was. He and the hedgehog were Chaos Controlled together. It made sense that they ended up in the same place. Espio knew that it was a crazy theory, but it was the only complete puzzle the pieces could be made into.

So the Mobians he had already met weren't…wait, no. Rogue, Silver, and Penumbra definitely knew _him,_ but Vanilla and Cream…if this was indeed another world, then the rabbits' actions made perfect sense. Heh. Too bad they were caught in the crossfire.

However…if him being in a different dimension was actually the case, then how did that explain Shadow? The striped hedgie was ready to rip him apart, so Espio knew that it was the same rodent. The chameleon racked his brain, but came up with nothing. He'd think more about it later.

Right now, he would revel in the fact that this Eggman – which apparently wasn't _his_ – could be dealt with without any feelings attached. Espio eyed Metal's metallic body. Hm…maybe at a later date. The robot needed to get patched up.

Also, he would have a _grand_ time getting rid of any extras that got in his way.

"If we are done speaking, I need to get repaired."

"I can't do it." Espio popped his back, settling down more in the chair. It was strangely comfortable. "Eggman could though."

"I highly doubt that he would assist me in any way."

Espio scoffed. "We'll see about that."

"IT IS FINISHED."

The ninja smiled at the arrival of Omega. He looked over to the bulky mech, and his smile bated some when he saw the _extremely_ crude fixings Omega apparently made on _himself._ He even reconstructed his arm (Espio guessed with the help he received), but it was nothing like the original product. It seemed like it would fall off at any moment. The reptile inwardly sighed. _I'll take care of him later._

"I HAVE ATTEMPTED TO BE MORE ELASTIC LIKE YOU WANTED ME TO, SO I WENT AHEAD AND REPAIRED MYSELF."

"I'm glad that you…went ahead and did that."

Omega turned toward Metal Sonic and assessed his condition. "I CAN FIX YOU."

Metal pointedly angled his head away. "Your help will not be satisfactory."

"DO YOU NOT SEE MY NEW ARM? I CAN-"

"Never mind him Omega," Espio started, wondering if the red and black mech actually did what he was sent to do. "Do you have the product?"

"YES." A small flap opened up on the robot's front, and he grabbed the collar from the storage space. Omega approached Espio, holding it out. "ARE YOU CONTENT?"

"Very." The chameleon rolled it over in his hands before raising at brow at his bot. "Where's the remote?"

"OH." Omega reached inside himself again and pulled out a tiny device. "HERE IT IS."

Espio pressed a button on the little remote, and a light on the collar lit up. "You are very dependable Omega, I applaud you for that." The reptile then waved the stout machine off. "Now go and fix the door that the psychic broke. We can't afford any more potential breaches."

"I AM ON IT."

As soon as Omega disappeared, Espio tossed the collar and its accessory over to Metal. "You get that on him, and Eggman will do whatever you want." The blue bot stared at the objects in his hands before turning to make his leave. "Wait a minute." Metal glanced back to see Espio looking at the screen again, using _all_ of his fingers (how the reptile had healed his other arm, Metal didn't necessarily care) to navigate the system. "Come here." When Metal was at the chameleon's side, Espio pointed to a smaller touchscreen right of the keyboard. "Scan your hand."

"Why?"

Espio smirked at him. "You won't be able to get Eggman out otherwise. And plus, this is so you can deal out as much punishment as you like as well."

Metal didn't move for a moment, but then he splayed out his metallic fingers on the clear surface. His hand was scanned. "Is that it?" The robot didn't expect to be given this privilege. Eggman would have never trusted him this much to practically have all access to the rooms of the base. Metal knew that he made the right choice in choosing between the doctor and the chameleon.

"Yes, now you can get him out. He's in a closet with a chair in front of it."

Metal swiftly turned on his heel and planned to exit the room, but Espio's voice stopped him yet again. "One more thing, Metal." Said robot peered over his shoulder to see the reptile gesturing to a picture on the monitor. "I'm torn with a decision. This base is fine and all, but apparently it isn't impossible to find. The things I want to build are…too important to our plans to be built here. Especially when we get the Master Emerald. So." Espio locked gazes with him. "Which abandoned base would be best to have a secret operation in? This one." There was a mouse click. "Or this one?"

Metal couldn't believe that he was being asked this. "Does it matter?"

"Of course, and I want your opinion."

There was a pregnant pause. "The underwater one would be more secretive than the base in the desert."

Espio hummed. "That was what I was thinking too. Thank you for your input."

Metal didn't answer as he flew off as quickly as he could so he wouldn't get stopped again.

The chameleon let out an amused snort before preparing himself to do a little searching. Eggman had to have _something_ on here that would prove the dimension theory. It took a while – Espio had to go deep – but he eventually found an interesting folder.

The Chaotix.

He didn't know why, but he was just drawn to the file. He clicked on it, his breath hitching when the pictures popped up.

If this wasn't proof, he didn't know what was.

* * *

 **Next chapter…fishing!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer- I don't own anything!**

 **Chapter 22- How many people does it take to catch a frog?**

Espio tapped his fingers on the arm of the chair he was settled in, staring up at the large screen in front of him. His brow was somewhat furrowed as he went over the numbers and words shown to him over and over again. He just sat there staring until his expression smoothed out and he nodded to himself, coming to a decision.

The chameleon stood out of his seat and strolled out of the main office with purpose. His footsteps were barely audible as he traversed the metallic halls, strides long and powerful. Well, that was until he turned a corner and almost stumbled at what he saw. He resisted the _strong_ urge to sigh in exasperation.

Metal had gotten Eggman out alright; however, the rotund man was sprawled out in the middle of the floor, limbs twitching and very unconscious. An amber iris slowly focused up at the broken mech who was standing there like he didn't know what to do.

Red opticals sought out a yellow one. "I had it on a too high of a setting. Are you positive that you cannot repair me?"

"Absolutely positive," Espio replied, regaining his step as he ambled past the man/robot duo, "He'll wake back up soon, I think." The reptile waved the other off. "You'll be fixed in no time."

The ninja would've continued on his way if a mechanical voice hadn't stopped him. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going out."

"That is not a sufficient answer."

Espio peered over his shoulder, one side of his lips curling upwards. "Let's just say that I can… _empathize_ with you."

"Elaborate."

A full-blown smirk was on his face now. "I can see why you're so adamant in your pursuit of your…copy." Before Metal would respond, Espio turned his back on him once again and continued on his way. "Don't worry about me. I won't be out for too long." As he walked off, he half expected for Metal to come charging after him, demanding answers. It never happened. Maybe the robot was just content that someone was on his exact wavelength for once. Who knew what was going on in that head of his.

Espio went on, not bothering to stop to look in either of the trespassers' rooms. He didn't care about them at the moment. However, the chameleon did take a second to peer through the one-way glass of the ultimate weapon's room. Said hedgehog was laying slightly curled up beside a now-awake rabbit. Cream was gazing worriedly at Penumbra, for the striped one was hiding his face in his arms. There was then a single twitch of a black furred ear – Espio knew that he had been detected – but the rodent didn't raise his head. Instead, he let the bunny pull him in for a hug, and he went limp against her.

The reptile just tilted his head a bit at their interaction before moving on. Penumbra would get used to being used. Being obedient would become second nature to him.

Espio barely traveled a few yards before he hit the battle zone. The robots that Penumbra had dealt with earlier still had their parts scattered everywhere, wires and semi-melted scrap metal decorating the space. The chameleon shuffled through the rubbish, pieces of limbs being kicked away as he walked. However, the ninja paused in his stride when a particular metallic shard gained his attention. Espio bent down and picked it up. It was narrow enough to fit in his hand and – he licked the single drop of blood off his finger when he had snagged it – _sharp_ enough to satisfy him.

Well, almost.

He was used to the weight and shape of trustworthy kunai. This misshapen shard of metal would drastically lower his chances of achieving the purpose for his outing.

Espio dropped the metallic object and resumed shuffling from the debris. He could easily pilfer any of his signature weapons from any shop that sold them along the way.

After turning a couple more corners, the ninja was greeted with the sight of Omega standing by as two lesser robots measured and worked on repairing the broken door. His bot's eyes trained on him, but Espio disregarded the gaze. He simply strolled over to the abandoned hover craft that had not been moved and hopped into it. He played with a couple buttons and switches, and within a couple minutes, he knew how to fly it.

Now hovering in the air, Espio aimed for the exit. Omega gestured for the other robots to move and then asked, "WHERE ARE YOU GOING, MASTER ESPIO?"

"Hunting," the chameleon quipped, moving towards the open door. He paused before going through it however, pausing right in front of the bulky mech. "I shouldn't be gone long, but just keep an eye on Metal and the doctor. Make sure that they don't do anything they shouldn't."

"UNDERSTOOD."

Espio nodded. "Good." The reptile disappeared through the threshold, bypassing the upward stairs. He pushed open the trap door and let it close with a nosy bang. He didn't really care about secrecy at the moment. All he could think about was the Chaotix and the address that he had memorized.

Not wasting a second, Espio took off into the skies.

* * *

At first, the voices were muddled as he slowly regained consciousness.

Sonic unconsciously let out a groan as he tried to figure out where and _how_ he was. The last thing that he remembered was pain…a _helluva_ lot of pain. Oh…and Stripes leaning over him, along with some kind of sensation that was equivalent to putting a band-aid over a severed limb. Well, considering that he wasn't dead – because he _really_ should be – that striped hedgehog had saved his life.

Because he had failed.

Again.

 _Chaos_ , there was one thing that he knew that he was meant to do. Destroy robots. And he could even to _that_ right. Dammit, he wanted to get angry. Angry at that robot, angry at Eggman, angry at that stupid chameleon that started this whole mess. But he couldn't.

And that _frustrated_ him.

He couldn't fill himself up with rage because he didn't have the energy. The injuries, the losses, and his losing fight with keeping his distance from those…those _brats,_ Stripes included, were just draining him. The fights were messing with him physically, losing _everything_ was messing with his psyche, and…and it seemed that no matter _what_ he did, he couldn't get away from them.

If he tried to go off by himself, someone would always find him, and vice versa. Shit, he hadn't even _met_ this place's Cream, and he was all about saving her.

He hated all of them, but yet he was…attached? No. Not that. More like…aware.

That was the problem. The more that he was aware that they were there, the more that they were aware that _he_ was there. Dependence. They would start trusting him, hell, he knew that some of them already have despite outward appearances (a certain hedgehog, echidna, and bat came to mind).

But Sonic couldn't have that. If they trusted him…they would be around him more, and…

No.

But dammit, there was nothing he could do to stop it.

And he was so _tired_ of trying to stop it. Pushing took more energy than he had initially thought.

But what if another tragedy…

He'd just have to be extra freaking careful then.

There would be no more death around him if he could help it.

"…everyone knows where to go and what to do…"

Oh right. He forgot about the voices; too focused on his horrible stupid life.

Sonic groaned again as he blinked his eyes open, lowly hissing at the onslaught of bright light. He slowly swept the area with his gaze, attempting and failing to pinpoint exactly where he was. He wasn't in the city anymore, that's for damn sure.

"Not everyone…" That voice sounded familiar…

"My twin can come with me." That voice sounded _too_ familiar.

He snapped his hazy emerald irises to his right, seeing a bunch of blobs of many colors. "…the f-fuck?" He stuttered out as he pushed himself into a sitting position, rubbing his eyes to clear his vision. Sonic stopped when that action smeared something warm and thick across his face. He glanced down only for his breath to hitch. Right. He forgot about the whole bleeding to death thing while he was wallowing in his own misery. "Chaos..."

The blue hedgehog ignored all of the eyes on him as he felt his abdomen, not surprised to feel it smooth and unblemished. But then he noticed that all of his previous bruises were gone on his body – Sonic felt his cheeks again – and on his face. His gunshot wound was completely healed too.

 _Great,_ he inwardly cursed, _Just effing perfect. Now I have to-_

His train of thought derailed when a hand was suddenly in his face. Hard emerald orbs then focused on the body the appendage was attached to, seeing his doppelganger standing in front of him, holding out the hand to take. Insanely familiar green irises were staring back at him, the friendly grin on the other's face not quite reaching those jades.

"Need some help?"

Sonic slowly narrowed his eyes.

His twin rolled his. "Okay, I know that we started on the wrong foot – well, you more than I did – but can't we start over? A little apology from you, and I can wipe the slate clean! Whatdya say?"

Remember when he said that he hated everybody? That went twice for this cheeky little shit.

Sonic slapped the outstretched hand away, scowl already set in place. He wobbly stood up and took a step away from his mirror image, crossing his arms and ignoring the way the blood almost made his nose scrunch up.

"An apology? You want an apology from _me?_ " Sonic spat, blood beginning to boil. Looked like he still had room for the rage after all. He just needed someone to rile him up. His thoughts were dangerous if he was left alone with them for too long. The hedgehog stepped toward his flabbergasted twin and jabbed a bloodied finger not-so-gently in a peach chest. " _Hell_ to the no, especially because what just happened is _your_ damn fault! You owe _me_ an apology!"

"What?" The addressed took a slight step back, and Sonic inwardly grinned. The other held his hands up innocently. "What just happened…? You mean Metal _attacking_ you? How is that my fault?!"

Sonic knew that he was being petty, that he was really stretching it here, but he needed to get his doppelganger riled up. If he was angry, then Sonic was angry, and he wouldn't have to think. He'd been thinking too much lately.

"How is it _not_ your fault?" Sonic growled, muscles tensing when he noticed the slightly affronted expression on the other's face. "That stupid robot told me that you have fought him before! Isn't it your _job_ to destroy robots, huh? Did you let that one go because you decided to be _nice?_ "

Damn he was such a hypocrite.

The mirror image dropped his hands, a frown growing on his muzzle. He took a step forward, emerald irises sharp. "I _did_ destroy him pal, so get your facts straight! Egghead must've rebuilt him or something! So don't blame _me_ just because you let your guard down!" Sonic's growl turned into a snarl, and the memory of the other punching his face in was fuel for the fire. A sigh then came from his calmer double. "Look, I don't want to fight, I'm tryin' to be nice here-"

" _Fuck_ being nice," Sonic snapped, words filled with venom, " _You_ should have dealt with Eggman a long time ago! If-"

"Ladies, ladies! You're both pretty." Sonic glanced up at the new voice and hissed when Rouge fluttered in between them, causing the two hedgehogs to back up. His heat-filled gaze was on her now, and the winged Mobian barely looked at the other speedster before focusing fully on him. "Now let's calm down and stop fighting." She then waved a hand in front of her nose. "And get you washed up."

"Piss _off_ , bat." Sonic glared hard at her, baring his teeth. His fists were clenched and ready to swing. He then turned his attention back to his twin, seeing him staring right back. The tension could be cut with a knife. "Get out the damn way."

"No, I _won't_ until-"

"Wait a sec, Rouge." The other hero interjected, not even looking at her. "Other me, what do you mean by 'dealt with Eggman'?"

" _Permanently."_ Sonic sneered. He'd done it, and he believed that if that chameleon hadn't shone his ugly head, the doctor would've been as quiet as a mouse (and probably alive, but that couldn't be helped).

His double gasped before throwing his own glare. "You need serious help, pal."

"And _you_ need a fist in your face!" Sonic made to move around the bat, but she wouldn't let him.

"What did I just say?" She admonished.

"Get out the _way_ bitch!" Sonic barked, switching targets. "Or I might consider hitting girls who deserve it."

"If you lay _one_ hand on her," Suddenly Sonic's vision was filled with red. A severely irked echidna was in his face, lips pulled back in a growl. "I will pummel you so hard that-"

Sonic scoffed, cutting him off. "You must be the other one, because the echidna _I_ know wouldn't ever say that." He grinded his teeth together as he snarled. "He doesn't want to get his ass kicked!"

Knuckles didn't back down, but before he could get any closer, Rouge held out an arm in front of him. The echidna didn't let her speak however. He snorted. "Yeah right! I'm not afraid of you, in fact, I'm going to put you in your pl-" The echidna was then launched to the side when Sonic roundhouse kicked him, no one expecting that swift move. He didn't even watch how far the red one went, or that a worried Rouge went over to check on him. The hedgehog was focused on how much his heel was throbbing. _Hell, he has a hard head._

There were a multitude of gasps (this was the first time that Sonic noticed that he had a notable audience), but before he could focus on that, a hand fisted the red-spattered skin on his chest. He was looking in a mirror again. "What did I say about attacking my friends _?_ " The words were bit at him before a fist made contact with his cheek. "I don't care if you were attacked; you're healed now, and you better fix your attitude if you don't want a repeat of White Acropolis!"

Sonic was still reeling from the hit, so he couldn't maintain his balance when he was shoved to the ground. He grunted when he landed, sending the speedster above him as much hate as he could manage.

His twin wasn't affected; he just placed his hands on his hips. "After all we've done for you, and this is how you repay us?"

Sonic, trembling with rage, was about to pounce, but a shrill cry made his ears flatten themselves against his head. "Stop fighting! Please stop!" The pink banshee yelled as she attached herself to his double's arm, yanking it backwards. "Please Sonikku!"

"A-Amy!" He stuttered out, surprised, "But I'm not the one-"

"I'm _tired_ of people interrupting!" Sonic shouted, slowly standing back up, "Just-" His words then died his throat when a hand grabbed _his_ own arm and pulled him backwards. He glanced back. "What the…?" Then he growled when he recognized the reptilian green eyes. Mephiles was clearly fearing for his life, but the dumbass still had the nerve to interfere. "Let me go!"

When the shadow hedgie shook his head, Sonic went to throw a punch, but then his other wrist was clenched. Outraged, he turned his head to see who had stopped him _this_ time to notice that it was one of the yellow foxes. Considering that the kid had the courage to even _get_ this close, Sonic deduced that it was his double's kit. It didn't matter though, the younger one's face still ticked him off.

Suddenly – to the azure speedster's confusion – he was lifted into the air, the kit on one side, and the perpetual sugar high buzzing on the other (Mephiles must've switched off when he wasn't looking). He tried kicking his legs, wiggling around, anything, but he couldn't get loose.

"Are you done now, hedgehog?"

Sonic's eyes narrowed at that voice, and his ears were pinned down in agitation when Stripes walked into view. Sonic refused to answer, feeling embarrassed that two _children_ alone were keeping him trapped. It didn't show on the outside though, thank Chaos.

Then the other Mobians who had been watching from the sidelines trailed after the two-toned hedgehog. They all were forming a semi-circle around him, deepening his frown.

"You know, it was peaceful before you woke up." Poisonous emeralds snapped over to the echidna he was more familiar with. Half-lidded amethysts were swirling with muted irritation. "You'll never change, will you?"

"Shut the hell _up_ , Dreads," Sonic gnashed his teeth.

"Great comeback. I'll write it down."

Sonic tried to jerk his wrists again to no avail. "Yeah um…that's not going to work." The hedgie glanced up at the hovering kit and wanted to punch that smug little grin off his face. "So just give up."

There was a laugh. Sonic's twin pointed up at the fox and winked. "That's my Tails!"

The croc chuckled. "You raised him well!"

The other pinkette off to the side looked at her own brother. "Think that you could do that one day?" The little brat had the nerve to smile and nod.

"I hate you all." Sonic's frown could not be any more prominent.

"Right back at you, you stupid little…" Knuckles responded as he marched his way back over with a hideous looking bruise on the side of his head. Rouge was right behind him, grinning at his mumblings. The echidna then stopped beside Stripes and shook his fist at the trapped speedster. "If I was any less of a guardian I would-!"

"Yeah yeah Knuckie, we know." Rouge consoled, "But it's time to let off some steam. We don't want people getting riled up again." She pointedly looked at Sonic, and he wanted to set her ablaze with his gaze.

"You didn't answer my question from before, Faker." Sonic returned his attention to Stripes and desperately wanted to rip that word from the striped hedgehog's vocabulary as forcefully as he could. He had his fill with being called fake with that blabbering robot from earlier. Cool scarlets met with fiery emeralds. "Are you done?"

Sonic glared before biting out, "Yeah, whatever. Put me down now."

"Nope!" His other self smirked, making Sonic want to scream in rage. The captured hero could do nothing but watch as his twin ambled up to him and flicked his nose. He pulled his hand back just in time to avoid sharp canines (and hopped back in time to avoid a well-aimed kick). "This is your punishment while we explain things to you. Be a good little boy," the doppelganger patted one of Sonic's cheeks, angling himself so that Sonic couldn't kick him like he wanted. "'kay?"

Sonic's whole body twitched. "Listen here you little-"

"No," Stripes cut in, taking a step forward. "It's time for _you_ to shut up and listen. We don't have the time for your childish behavior." _Childish behavior…_ Sonic seethed, _I'll show you childish behavior asshole! Just wait until they put me down…_ The darker hedgie continued, oblivious to his thoughts, "I'm not going to sugarcoat this. Espio has Rogue and Silver."

It took a second for those words to register. When they did, Sonic's whole body went slack. "Are you serious… _again?_ Bat-face…and now that freakin' psycho?" _Chaos…that chameleon is going to tear them to effing shreds, if he hasn't already._ At that thought, something bubbled in Sonic's gut that he didn't want to identify.

"He's not a psycho!" One of the pinkettes yelled before quieting a bit. "Silver's just…a bit unpredictable…at times."

"Like I give a damn," Sonic nastily replied, hoping that his anger covered up anything else he didn't want publicized.

Striped resumed like he hadn't interrupted. "Eggman and Espio wants the Master Emerald for them and Cream; they want to make the trade-off in a day. We plan to collect the Chaos emeralds so the ME's retrieval will be facilitated afterwards."

Sonic made the connection immediately. He glanced over at his twin. "You want to go Super." He said it more like a statement than a question.

"Yeah," the other responded, "If me, Shads, Silver, and well…you go in and-"

"Wait an effing second." Sonic's eyes were wide before they narrowed at the black hedgehog. "You _and_ that psychic can both go Super?"

His blue double cocked his head. "You didn't know that?"

He was ignored. Stripes nodded. "Correct. Have any complaints, hedgehog?"

 _But I am supposed to be the only…_ Sonic clenched his fists. "No."

The striped Mobian then palmed the Chaos emerald he had hid in his quills. Sonic's breath hitched. _That's my-!_ "Before you say anything, Faker, this isn't the emerald you've had in the other world. That one is somewhere else."

"That's bs!" Sonic shouted, not falling for Stripes' tricks. Two red emeralds? Yeah right. "That's my-"

Stripes let out a harsh sigh. "You find the emerald in Metal City, and I'll trade you."

Sonic blinked, thrown back a bit, but then he regained his wits. "Why the hell should I do that when I can just take it from you now?"

"So you will have something to do," he easily replied, "You've been in Station Square all this time, accomplishing nothing. I thought that you'd appreciate the distraction I'm offering to you."

Distraction.

A…distraction.

 _Damn you, Stripes._

Sonic let out a huge breath, giving the darker hedgie a level gaze. It was silent for a moment until: "Put me down."

"But…" The bee started to oppose, but Stripes nodded at him and the fox. The hedgehog was quickly grounded, and the two kids swiftly put space in between them and him.

Sonic and his rival stared each other down, one gaze daring the rogue 'hog to start something, and the second debating if rushing in for the emerald in front of his face was worth it.

Peach lips moved. "Where in Metal City?"

The ghost of a smirk on Stripes face wasn't missed. "It'll be easy enough to find."

Sonic scoffed before taking a step to the side, about to zoom off, but an irritating (he'd never thought that his own voice would be annoying) voice stopped him. "Hey, that's my house over there. If you want to get cleaned up, you can-" Sonic gave him a pointed glare before running off in a gust of wind.

Everyone watched him go, disappearing from sight.

"…or maybe not." Sonic tapped his foot on the ground, rubbing his neck.

Shadow massaged his temples, more than glad that the hedgehog was out of his presence. "Difficult as always."

"At least you got him to do it." Rosy scrunched her nose. "Who knows what would've happened if you weren't here!"

"I would've pounded him to a pulp!" Knuckles yelled, "I mean he _seriously_ has problems." He touched his bruise and flinched. That hedgehog could hit hard too.

"Actually…" Rouge shifted her glimmering teals to the Ultimate Lifeform. "He reminds me of you Shadow, in a way."

Said hedgehog folded his arms across his chest. "Just _don't_ , Rouge."

VC furrowed his brow. " _He_ reminds you of Shadow? Really?"

"Yeah!" CB chirped, "Shadow's really nice while he's really mean!"

Sonic couldn't help but chuckle, winking at his brooding rival. "Let's get back to that later. How about we get ready to go yeah? Tails, start whipping up those trackers so we can get movin'!"

"Right!" The kit hovered over to his garage.

Sonic then faced the way his doppelganger went, his smile melting into a smirk. _Let's see who can get to that Chaos emerald first, other me._

* * *

"So…are Rouge and Knuckles a thing, or…?"

Rosy tilted her head toward her twin in the passenger seat, waiting for the other's answer to her attempt of a conversation starter. They had been riding for a while ever since Tails had finished with the trackers and the extra communicators that were needed (Chaos, that fox could work _fast_ ), and everyone had been pretty much quiet. Even CB hadn't spoken up much from the back of the buggy.

She guessed that they were all just thinking about everything that had happened, from the whole thing with Cream, Rogue, and Silver to the rude Sonic just making their day harder. Rosy wanted to talk about _something_ because if she worried any more about her friends with evil Espio, she'd break down. Just because that reptile wasn't going to kill them, it didn't mean that they were safe.

Images popped into her head, and she shuddered.

Her salvation came when Amy finally answered. The pinkette tapped her chin, gazing up at the drifting clouds overhead. "Um…I don't think so. They act like it, but I don't think anything's official…"

Rosy rose a brow, appreciating this talk. "Do you know why?" Amy shook her head, and Rosy prodded, "Do you think it's because Shadow and Rouge might be a thing?"

Amy made a face and waved her hands to dismiss that idea. "Definitely not. Yeah, Shadow and Rouge work together and all, but Shadow's too…Shadow. I personally don't think that he loves anything…besides like guns or something."

Rosy giggled behind a hand, her other one carefully steering. "Okay, so it's definitely not because of Shadow. Have any idea why Rouge and Knuckles aren't…?"

The other pinkette hummed. "Well, I personally think that it's Knuckles."

The hedgehog in the driver's seat blinked. "Why?"

"Because he's too stubborn!" Amy exploded. "And maybe oblivious…and just…ugh! I think she can make him happy and give him something other than spe – I mean, the Master Emerald to think about." She sighed and propped her head up on her palm, arm resting against the door. "He should just give up already."

"…Why do I get the feeling that we're not talking about Knuckles anymore?"

Amy pouted. "Sonic's gonna be mine one day…"

Rosy didn't say anything. She just reached over and patted the other's shoulder in sympathy. "I know how you feel."

Now it was Amy's turn to raise a brow. "Really? But I don't think so!" She perked back up, and Rosy suddenly felt a bit nervous. "You have a better chance than I do! I've been around Sonic for a _long_ time, and I know it's going to be hard for me, but you haven't known Rogue for as long! You don't have _any_ idea how-"

"I think I know." Rosy sighed. "Any chance I've had before is gone now."

"What makes you think that?"

"Rouge."

Amy paused before giving a shaky smile. "Don't give up! You never know what could happen!"

Rosy laughed at her attempt. "Thanks for that."

The other girl giggled. "Anytime!"

Their conversation lulled a bit, and Rosy threw her voice behind her. "Hey CB, are you still back there?"

There was a sniff. "Yeah…"

Two pairs of green irises jumped back to the solemn bee who was fiddling with his thumbs. The girls locked worried gazes before Rosy focused back on the road – appreciating the fact that the buggy was more like a golf cart than an actual car – while she let Amy take control of the bee situation.

"Hey…" She started, placing a comforting hand on the insect's knee. "I know everything seems bad right now, but it's going to work out, okay? With everybody working, especially my Sonic, things are going to be just fine! Silver is going to be safe and sound, trust me!"

CB wiped his moist face. "But…But Blaze…"

Amy chewed on her bottom lip, thinking. "We can always get you another-"

"It's not going to be the same!" The bee wailed, "She was so small and cute and soft and…"

Amy turned back to the front, looking truly sorry for the kid. Rosy didn't look any better. "Only time will heal him I think," she told her, and Amy nodded in agreement.

They had left the bee alone after that, quietly talking about other topics that ranged from the mean Sonic to comparing where they shopped. That passed the time, because they were in front of the Chaotix building before they knew it.

Rosy smiled when she noticed Vector's jeep parked out front. They had to be back from their morning job. She hopped out of the vehicle with a just as peppy Amy and a glum CB following her. When she reached the front door, her spirits fell.

"What's wrong Rosy?" Amy asked.

Said hedgehog glanced over her shoulder. "I…I don't think that they know anything about your Cream…"

Amy's eyes widened. "Oh no…They're going to be so… _Vector_ is…" She took a deep breath. "They need to know."

"I know…" Then an amused glint appeared in Rosy's gaze. "And remember that we will see _your_ Espio; don't start swinging."

Amy rolled her eyes. "I _won't._ But if we ever see the other one, that'll be a different story!"

Before Rosy could respond, the door she was about to knock on swung open to reveal the tallest member of the detective agency.

Vector looked down at them curiously. "I knew I heard voices out here! And thought that someone was talking to themselves…" He muttered under his breath before continuing at a louder volume. "So welcome back! Uh…" The croc glanced back and forth between the two cotton candy colored hedgehogs. "I see that you found your dimensional twin! Um…" Vector sighed, giving up. "Okay, so which one of you were here earlier?"

With a smile, Rosy rose her hand. "That'll be me! You can call me Rosy to keep things simple."

"Alright! That makes things easy enough!" Vector leaned against the door frame. "So what brings you back here?" He then noticed the bee in the background, his brow furrowing. "And what's wrong with him?"

Both of the girls took a big breath. "You're going to need to sit down for this."

Ten minutes later, Rosy waited for the trio's reactions. They were now situated around the round kitchen table. Rosy had Amy on her right and CB on her left. She was across from Vector, who had Charmy on his right and Espio on his left. Most of the Chaotix (sans Charmy, who made comments here and there) had stayed quiet as the pinkettes took turns explaining the series of events. CB was face down against the table, the occasional sniffle coming from him.

Espio was madder than Rosy had ever seen him. His voice was sharp when he spoke. "He has gone too far. He must be sto-"

"YOU'RE DARN RIGHT HE MUST BE STOPPED!" Vector catapulted out of his chair, making the crafted wood fall back and clatter against the floor. The crocodile waved his arms crazily as he paced. "WHAT KIND OF MONSTER WOULD DO THAT?! TARGETING MS. VANILLA, TAKING CREAM, AND _KILLING_ …" Vector took a deep breath to calm himself. He picked up his chair and plopped back down in it. His stare was filled with determination. "We're in." He pounded fist on the table. "If someone messes with our friends, they mess with US! We'll help however we can!"

"I mean…Why would he do that?" Charmy was airborne, flying in an anxious circle. "That's so mean! Cream and Cheese hadn't done anything to anybody!"

"That's the question, isn't it?" Amy sadly sighed.

CB let out a quiet sob, and Rosy's heart went out to him. She grabbed the child and positioned him in her lap so he could cry on her shoulder.

"And of course we care concerned for your friends as well, Rosy." Espio said, expression softening at the sight of the weeping kid. "He may hesitate in harming Cream, however…"

"Yeah." The pinkette cut him off before he could say anymore. She didn't want to think about it.

Vector stood out of his chair again. "Now that we've been filled in, how about we get this show on the road! We're lookin' for a Chaos emerald, right?"

"Right!" Amy pulled the little tracker they were given out of the cuff of her glove. It was programed to beep when it was close to the emerald. "Tails said that it was in a lake nearby. You guys know where it is?"

"Sure we do! It's my favorite spot to take a dip when it gets too hot 'round here," Vector answered.

"And it's my preferred spot to go at night when some people refuse to sleep," Espio muttered, causing the girls to giggle.

The croc just waved him off. "It'll take no time to get there in my jeep. Let's hit the road!"

When Vector marched over to the door, Charmy flew over to his double who was still being clutched by Rosy. "Come on! We're going on a little adventure!" Charmy pulled the other's arms a bit. "You can't be sad on an adventure!"

Rosy loosened her grip when CB leaned away from her. He hovered in the air, rubbing his eyes. He gave his twin a small smile. "Th-That's true…"

"That's the ticket!" Charmy whirled around the bee. "Let's go!" He flew out of the door, and CB followed him quickly, softly chuckling as he did so.

"Charmy's happiness is contagious," Rosy stated with a grin.

"Which is great because maybe CB won't be so down! At least for a little while," Amy commented, standing out of her seat. She then cocked her head when the grin melted off of Rosy's face. "I guess it's not contagious enough…"

Rosy took a deep breath. "I'm just worried…I can't help it, you know?"

The last of the Chaotix rose from his seat and approached them. There was unquestionable confidence in his stance. His words were sure. "Evil never wins, just remember that."

Amy beamed at him. "Of course!"

Rosy couldn't exactly manage that. "If you say so."

* * *

"Here we are!" Vector pulled up to the edge of the lake, close but not too close. A light breeze was blowing through the area, creating little ripples that reflected the light of the late afternoon sun. The body of water was vast. One could barely see the other side of it.

The slow beeping that had started a minute ago began to pick up the pace. "It's definitely here!" Amy confirmed, the small tracker in her hands. She stared at the large lake, face falling a bit. "Somewhere in there."

"This is going to take a while," Rosy commented, thinking that it'll probably take _at least_ an hour to find the emerald.

"Hopefully not too long." Vector huffed before handing the chameleon in the passenger's seat his valuable headphones. "Here hold these. Don't want to get them wet while I dive."

Espio took the headwear and placed it beside him while the croc climbed out of the vehicle. "Is the tracker waterproof?" He asked, glancing at the pinkettes in the back seat.

Amy glanced down at her device. "Um…I don't think so. It doesn't look like it, and Tails didn't tell us if it was…"

"Can't we just ask him?" CB questioned, hovering around the car alongside his double. His spirits had apparently been lifted. "We can use the communicator he gave us!"

Rosy pulled said object from the cuff of her glove. "I guess we can! And I think it'll be good to tell the others that you guys are helping." There were nods all around, and the female hedgehog pressed a button on the side of the communicator. She held it up to her mouth. "Hey Tails?"

" _He's a little busy flying right now._ " A gruff voice answered. It had to be Knuckles. _"What do you need…Amy…?"_

Rosy giggled. "Close enough. We just wanted to know if the trackers are waterproof."

" _Waterproof? Oh right, your emerald is in the middle of a lake."_ There was a brief pause where the only thing heard were muffled voices. _"Tails says they aren't. He said that he was trying to finish them quickly, so he just forgot to. He's sorry."_

"There's no need to be!" Rosy sent Vector an apologetic look. "It's just that a certain croc is going to do a heck of a lot more swimming."

" _So you got hold of the Chaotix, huh?"_ Sonic cut in from wherever he was. _"Great! The more the merrier! You guys filled them in?"_

Before Rosy could answer, Charmy swooped over and stole it from her. "Yeah they told us everything! It's so sad! We're gonna kick evil Espio's butt, right?"

" _Definitely!"_

" _Eventually,"_ Knuckles fixed, _"But for right now, just focus on the emerald. Then we can picture beating Espio into the ground."_

Espio quietly scoffed. "Well that's a rather pleasant image."

There was a snort. _"You know what I mean."_

"Right. We'll radio back in once we find the emerald."

" _We will too. See you."_

Knuckles went away, and no one spoke for a moment to see if another voice would pipe up. When that didn't happen, Charmy tossed the communicator back to Rosy. "That's a bummer!" He pointed out before facing his doppelganger. "Hey other me! Wanna play tag while Vector gets the emerald? It'll be fun to go over the water!"

CB grinned and tapped Charmy's shoulder. "You're it!" The bees then shot out toward the lake, laughing all the while.

"I'm glad that they get to play while I work," Vector mumbled as he stretched a bit.

"It shouldn't be too hard to find it," Espio placated, "It's a glowing gem. It doesn't exactly have the greatest camouflage. And plus, remember why we are doing this."

A spark went off in the green reptiles eyes, and he pumped a fist. "For JUSTICE!" Vector then took off for the shoreline before he jumped and dived in like a professional. The girls and Espio saw him under the water for a while until he went too deep and his outline became murky.

"So now…we wait?" Amy questioned, gazing off at a squirrel that had disappeared into some bushes.

"It seems so," Espio answered.

Rosy played with the communicator in her hands, trying to think of something that would put off the incoming silence. When she thought of a good enough topic, she asked, "Hey Espio, how did your job go? Did you…find the missing kid?"

"Yes," Rosy smiled, relieved, and she saw that the concerned expression Amy had been wearing morphed into one similar to hers. "The child had wondered into an uncovered sewer entrance and had been knocked out from the fall. Besides some bruising, there were no other injuries."

"Great." Rosy pleasantly sighed. "When you first got that call, I thought the kid had been kidnapped."

"Trust me, we all are glad that that wasn't the case." The ghost of a frown appeared on Espio's face. "Especially now." The atmosphere got a little heavier, and silence covered them like a blanket.

However, when the chameleon crossed his legs in the seat and closed his eyes, Rosy pushed away the dark thoughts and let her curiously take over. "Are you…meditating?"

Espio hummed in affirmation.

"We do need to…stay quiet?"

"Not necessarily."

Rosy glanced over to Amy, who just shrugged, as perplexed as she was. Then there was movement from the right side of the lake that caught the girls' attention. Amy had a surprised smile on her muzzle while Rosy gasped in shock. "Wait!" She whispered, not wanting to distract the chameleon up front. "Is that…Is that Dr. Big?"

Amy whirled on her, brow raised. "Dr. Big?" She repeated, voice low as well. The pinkette stifled her chuckles. "Big was a _doctor_ in your world?"

"Yeah!" _And not as…large._ "He had his own office and everything! He had a friend named Froggy that worked for him!"

Amy blinked slowly. " _Worked_ for him? Was Froggy not an actual frog where you came from?"

Rosy laughed to herself. "This is so weird…"

The other hedgehog just giggled before opening her door. She grabbed Rosy's wrist with her unoccupied hand. "Let's go talk to him!"

"O-Okay," Rosy responded, letting herself be pulled out of the jeep. She called back over her shoulder, "We'll be right back!" to Espio. Said reptile just grunted and gave a half-hearted wave in her general direction.

Amy let go of her soon after that and started to jog over to her acquaintance. Rosy was right behind her, watching as the larger-than-life purple cat whipped out a fishing rod, plopped down at the edge of the water, and began to fish.

"I'm just going to warn you now." Amy peered over her shoulder at her twin. "Big isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, if you know what I mean. Definitely not doctor material."

"I get you." Rosy nodded. "So are we going to explain everything that happened to him?"

Amy pursed her lips. "Nah, I don't want to burden him with that kind of stuff." Before Rosy could say a word, the hedgie in front of her began to wave an arm back and forth. "Hi Big!" The duo slowed down once they reached the cat, one female closer to him than the other. "What are you doing here?"

Big turned his head towards her, and his eyes widened. He smiled, big and bright. "Oh hi Amy!" He focused on Rosy. "And Amy!" He then shook his fishing rod a little bit. "I'm fishing for Froggy! He ran away from me again…Ooo!" The end of the line wiggled, and the reel was spinning rapidly. "Something's biting!" Big pulled whatever that was at the end of line up and was disappointed when it was a fish. "Aw…" He threw it back. "That's not Froggy…"

Rosy waited…and waited… After a moment, she turned to Amy. "He's…not even going to question it?"

Amy chuckled. "Just give him a minute."

Big put a hand up to his mouth. "Froggy! Where are you?" The cat sighed and put out another line.

"I'm sure you'll find him eventually, Big!" Amy encouraged.

"Yeah…" The violet feline looked over at her again, and then at Rosy. He furrowed his brow, and Rosy could imagine the gears turning inside of his head. "Whoa…wait a minute!" Big pointed at Amy's double. "Why are there two of you Amy?"

Said hedgehog linked her hands behind her back and rocked on her heels. "Long story short, this is my dimensional twin Rosy!"

Big cocked his head as he looked at the one beside Amy. Then he grinned and gave her a friendly wave. "Hello Rosy! Nice to meet you! I wish that Froggy could…"

Rosy gave him a shy one back before whispering to her doppelganger, "Again…He's not even going to question it?"

"Probably not," Amy responded, "A lot of things go over his head, and well," she gestured at the cat who had busied himself in fishing again, "he's got more important stuff on his mind!"

"Huh," Rosy replied intelligently, "So should we help him find Froggy?"

"Oh please." Amy shook her head. "It's nearly impossible for that frog to get caught if he doesn't want to be. He'll come back eventual…" Her words trailed off when the beeping from the tracker increased in volume and frequency, becoming hard to ignore. "What?" Amy looked at the device and then at the water not a meter in front of them. "Did Vector find it or something?"

Rosy squinted her eyes. "I don't see him in the water…"

"What are you two looking for? Maybe I can help?"

"It's okay Big." Rosy threw him a thankful smile. "I think we already found it!" She returned her focus to the water. "If Vector would only get up here..." Her ears twitched when the beeping became annoyingly loud, and she leaned more over the water. Vector had to be close! Then why couldn't she see…?

Rosy's heart then nearly stopped when something hopped out of the water. Something very wet, very swishy, and very _slimy_. And it didn't land on the ground – oh no – it landed on her _face._

She promptly screamed.

"Get it off! Get it off! Get it _off!_ " Rosy shook her head frantically and swatted at _whatever_ was on her until it jumped away. She was blubbering hysterically. "What _was_ that?! Oh Chaos I think I got some of it in my _mouth-!_ "

Both Big and Amy ignored her in favor of staring at the newcomer on the ground.

The cat gasped happily. "Froggy! Come here buddy!"

Unsurprisingly, the frog didn't move.

Amy was staring at the pet quizzically, seeing an unnatural bulge of the amphibian's belly and hearing the tracker go haywire. Putting those two things together, she exhaled harshly. "Oh you've got to be kidding me…"

"Wha – _gack!_ " Rosy wiped the rest of the slime off her face, staring in disgust as it dripped off her fingers. "What's wrong?"

"Froggy has the Chaos emerald!"

Rosy looked at her like she had lost her mind. "Are you serious right now?"

Amy rolled her eyes. "Why would I lie?" She then slowly approached the small animal. "Just stay there little frog…" _Uh, I'm going to have to get new gloves after this!_ "And let me…" Amy quickly bent down and grabbed the pet with two hands. "Ah ha! I got…" She gaped when the frog slipped out of her grip, hitting the ground and hopping away. "…you?"

"FROGGY!" Big ran (more like waddled) past them to futilely chase down the swift frog.

Rosy just watched with wide eyes before snapping her gaze over to the oblivious bees playing over the water. "CB! Charmy!" She yelled as loud as she could. When she had their attention, she pointed to the escaping amphibian. "Catch that frog! It has the Chaos emerald!" She and Rosy then ran after Big, slightly faster than the tubby feline.

"Okay!" Two voices answered her before the insects flew over to where Froggy was hopping. When they got close enough, the duo crashed into the ground where the frog was supposed to be, kicking up a load of dust.

"I got him! I got him!"

"No! I think I got him!"

When the girls and Big got over to the bees, the dust had dissipated enough to show that Charmy was grabbing CB's leg, and the latter was gripping the former's forearm. Both of the kids blinked in confusion. "Oh…I guess we don't…"

"Uh oh, where'd he go?" Big asked, looking around worriedly.

Amy started to panic when the beeping began to slow down. "Um…um…" She then pointed over to the left. "He's over there! And he's going into the bushes!"

Rosy huffed. "Just great." The pinkette glanced in the direction of the jeep, seeing Espio looking their way with a confused expression on his face. "Froggy has the Chaos emerald!" She enlightened him. "We're going after him!" Amy, Big, and the bees were already running after the pet. "Follow us after telling Vector!"

Espio had barely nodded before Rosy had turned and ran into the trees. The chameleon took a deep breath and let it out, his moment of peace disrupted. By a _frog_ no less. But the pet had the Chaos emerald, and he assumed that the possession made the situation dire.

The ninja hopped out of the jeep and ran to the water's edge, waiting for Vector to come up for air and hoping that it wasn't long before he did. The croc could hold his breath for a while, but he had been under for some time, so it couldn't be too long now.

Espio scanned the waters and then jerked his head up when he heard a feminine scream, similar to the one Rosy let out before. Froggy must have hopped on her again.

Amber irises went back to the water's surface when he heard something break it. Vector was more than a handful of meters out, wiping the clear liquid off his face. The croc turned to Espio. "You'd think that a GLOWING GEM would be EASY to find!"

The purple reptile resisted the urge to sigh. "Get out of the water. Froggy has the Chaos emerald, and the others went after him. We need to go too."

Vector furrowed his brow. "Froggy? Isn't that the-"

"Yes, unfortunately," Espio cut him off, backing up from the edge. "Hurry and get out."

The largest Chaotix member scoffed as he swam back. "Do they _really_ need our help? It's just a freakin' frog!"

"They aren't back yet, are they?"

"Yeah yeah…I get it." Vector was standing on land within the minute. He shook himself off. "So what direction did they go in?"

"This way." Espio sprinted away, hearing footsteps behind him. "They couldn't have gotten far. It hasn't been that long, and well…they are chasing a frog."

There was an explosive sigh from behind him as they passed through the threshold, pushing past leaves as they went. "Now you probably jinxed us! That's not just _any_ frog, that's BIG's frog, and I've heard stories-"

Espio stopped in his tracks, and Vector had to dig his heels in the dirt to prevent a collision. Before the croc could complain, the chameleon put a finger on his lips. "Listen." They did, and the loud beeping of the tracker was coming from their left, quite a distance away. Espio frowned. There was a clear disturbance of the foliage in front of him, continuing straight forward. _That frog had to be dragging them all over the place._

The ninja made a 'follow me' motion with his hand before running in the direction of the sound. Vector was in step with him. "I swear when we catch up with them, Imma convince that cat – because I _know_ he has to be with them – to get a leash for that thing."

"You can try," Espio quipped, ducking under branches.

It wasn't long until the pair was basically on top of the noise. Vector searched around while scratching his head, extremely baffled. "What the heck?" He did a three-sixty, observing the lush greenery around. "The beeping is here, but where are they?" Vector looked up into the trees as if they all decided to make the reptiles' job harder.

Espio had a bad feeling in his gut as he squatted down and pushed aside the tiny leaves of a bush, peering inside the plant. The beeping was coming from there. The ninja's eyes widened and his heart rate increased when he saw the tracker nestled inside.

"Vector, I…" The chameleon reached in to get the device. Espio then jumped up when he heard a loud thud behind him, leaving the tracker where it was. He whirled around to see his friend lying face-first on the grassy ground. His body tensed. "Vector!" Espio was about to take a step toward the downed crocodile, but then he noticed something odd behind the scaled body.

It was Froggy, and he was floating in midair.

Before Espio started to question his vision, the air shifted, and he was suddenly staring into a mirror.

A broken and _corrupted_ mirror.

Espio narrowed his eyes when he picked up the sound of chuckling. Frozen, he watched as Froggy was squeezed and as a dark blue Chaos emerald fell right into an awaiting hand. The frog was then chucked out of sight. The glistening jewel was admired by a single amber iris before it was trained solely on Espio.

"I think we can skip the introductions." There was a head tilt. "I know about you, and from the look in your eyes, you know about me. Let's get straight to the point."

Espio shifted his weight to the balls of this feet, ready to react to any attack. He was focused on nothing but the reptile in front of him; he couldn't afford to get distracted.

A smirk grew. "Hm. You're me alright."

Espio stayed silent as he kept calm. He had to be ready.

The other disappeared into thin air.

Espio waited and listened for a sign, a signal, or _something_ that would alert him of an attack.

But then he remembered that he was fighting himself, and that he wouldn't get any type of warning.

He disappeared as well.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Espio stayed invisible.

"You do favor the life of your friend, yes?"

He whirled his head to look at Vector, pulse increasing.

"Show yourself if you don't want me to kill him."

Espio didn't hesitate.

And he knew that this fight was going to be a long one.

* * *

… **One. It only takes one person to catch a frog. One chameleon, to be exact.**

 **Next chapter…good vs evil!**

 **A/N: Oh and happy birthday Sonic! (balloons fall and fireworks go off in the background) Keep on goin' strong!**


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer- If only…**

 **Warnings- graphic stuff, lots of red.**

 **Chapter 23- By the skin of your teeth**

" _Hey Tails?"_

Knuckles took his eyes off the passing landscape and glanced down at the communicator in his hand. Both Tails in the cockpit and TT in the backseat looked in his direction, the former quickly gazing back to the front to focus on his piloting duties.

Crouching low on the wing of the Tornado with wind blowing through his hanging quills, the echidna pressed the button on the side of the device and held it up to his mouth. "He's a little busy flying right now." Knuckles paused, analyzing the familiar voice from before. Chaos, he absolutely could _not_ tell the difference. He was just going to have to take a chance here. "What do you need…Amy…?"

There was a giggle on the other line. _"Close enough."_ Seeing movement to his left, Knuckles peered over to see TT snickering under his breath. The guardian rolled his eyes as he continued to listen. _"We just wanted to know if the trackers are waterproof."_

Knuckles rose a brow, wondering where that came from. "Waterproof?" Then it hit him, remembering where Rosy and her group had gone. "Oh right, your emerald is in the middle of a lake." The echidna brought down the communicator and threw his voice at Tails. "You heard that Tails?"

"Yeah…" The pilot rubbed the back of his head in shame. "I knew that I was forgetting _something_! I was rushing and…sorry!"

"I'm sure they'll live," Knuckles grunted before speaking into the device again, "Tails says they aren't. He said that he was trying to finish them quickly, so he just forgot to. He's sorry."

" _There's no need to be!"_ The one on the other end chirped (Knuckles still had _no_ idea who it was. Amy could be messing with him for all he knew), _"It's just that a certain croc is going to do a heck of a lot more swimming._ "

Knuckles figured that it was good that they had found the Chaotix. Unless Rosy or the other Charmy (his nickname slipped the guardian's mind) were excellent swimmers, that emerald would have been a challenge to get. They had Vector now though, so there shouldn't be any trouble regardless if the tracker could be used underwater or not.

The echidna opened his mouth to respond, but someone else beat him to it. _"So you got hold of the Chaotix, huh? Great! The more the merrier! You guys filled them in?"_ Knuckles frowned. Sonic sounded like he was talking about lighthearted party plans or something. He really couldn't be surprised though.

" _Yeah they told us everything!"_ Okay, that _had_ to be Charmy. _"It's so sad! We're gonna kick evil Espio's butt, right?"_

TT, who was looking over the tracker in his hands, winced slightly at the chameleon's name.

" _Definitely!"_

Knuckles decided to step back in to keep Sonic from pumping up the others too much. "Eventually. But for right now, just focus on the emerald. Then we can picture beating Espio into the ground."

An unexpected – yet sarcastic – voice then answered. _"Well that's a rather pleasant image."_

The fox in the backseat completely froze up, and Tails, who noticed it, started to calm the other back down, reassuring that this Espio was completely harmless. Well, to the heroes.

Knuckles snorted, squinting out in the distance and seeing faded mountains way in the background. "You know what I mean."

" _Right. We'll radio back in once we find the emerald."_

The guardian nodded even though the other couldn't see. "We will too. See you." Knuckles tucked the device away in the cuff of his glove. Then a small frown grew on his face, thinking about how tense this situation was. And it was all because of one person. Eggman had always (well, half and half) been a threat, and Knuckles didn't want to punch his face in as much as he wanted to do the evil Espio's.

He hadn't even _met_ the guy yet and he hated every fiber of his being. _No_ one should mess with the Master Emerald and its guardian. When the time came, Knuckles would be first in line to rearrange the rotten chameleon's face; everyone else could line up behind him.

Speaking of them…

"That's an interesting group of friends you have back there, TT," Knuckles started, focusing on the kit. The frown the echidna had deepened at the thought of two specific Mobians he had met. "Especially the other Sonic and me." All of the twins' personalities had been described to him, but it was another thing to see it in person.

TT fidgeted, remembering all of the beatings he had received from that speedster. "S-Sonic's no friend of mine…"

"Or anybody else's," Tails said from the front. The pilot resisted to rub the spot he had been punched before. "Every word he says just..." He sighed. "And him having Sonic's face makes it worse."

"I don't know," Knuckles shrugged, "Shadow's handled him well enough back there."

The ghost of a smile appeared on TT's muzzle. "Th-That's because he's h-had experience. Someone had to do it…" The kit then glanced over the side of the plane, seeing the land slowly change and feeling the temperature slowly drop. "Anyway, Knuc – er, Red is actually a g-great friend to have. He c-can take charge when he has to." He pursed his lips, looking back at Knuckles. "I know you d-don't like him, but…"

"He's a good guy, I know." Knuckles resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "It's that his lack of… _drive_ just rubs me the wrong way."

"Is that really it?" Tails asked, glancing over his shoulder at the echidna. "Or that he basically ignores the Master Emerald?"

"That too!" The guardian rose his voice, getting heated. "How could he not care about the Master Emerald at all? That's ignorant and irresponsible!"

Tails chewed the inside of his cheek. "I mean, kind of, but you don't have to ream him for it now." A smirk then formed, and Knuckles decided that he should separate the kit from the blue blur more often. Too much of Sonic was being rubbed off on the cub. "You don't want him to take your job, do you?"

Knuckles just huffed.

"N-Not that he'd do it anyway." TT yawned as he got comfortable in his seat, watching the gradually sinking evening sun, playing with his two tails. "H-He'll probably jump off the island within five minutes…"

The echidna let out a puff of air. "Someone needs to teach him about-"

"Th-That's why he didn't want to come." TT giggled under his hand.

Knuckles glared at him. "You must be _real_ glad that you found your sister, because you're getting a little too comfortable. Too bold."

The cub's chuckles died out, and his ears lowered. "S-Sorry."

"It's alright TT." Tails gave him a reassuring smile. "Knuckles always gets defensive when people gang up on him. It's a normal thing."

The guardian aimed his heated gaze at the one in the cockpit. "Yeah, Sonic is definitely a bad influence on you." Wanting to change the subject (and wanting those cheeky smiles gone off the others' faces), Knuckles grunted out, "How much longer Tails?"

"Another twenty-five minutes or so," the kit simply answered. He eyed the tracker he had in his dashboard, seeing no emeralds on it. "It'll be a while before the radar can pick up the emerald."

"Is this the fastest you can go?" Knuckles questioned, raising a brow.

"No _Sonic_ ," Tails quipped before explaining, "You're on the wing. I don't want you to fall off."

Knuckles waved him off. "I won't, but if there's the slim chance that I _do_ , I can glide. Gas it, Tails. If Penumbra's there with the emerald now, he might not be by the time we get there."

"You do have a point…" The kitsune admitted as he increased the Tornado's speed, Knuckles crouching lower on the wing to keep upright. "Though I wonder if he actually has the emerald…It wasn't moving when I saw it on the radar earlier."

"Maybe he's just sleeping."

"…Or hurt…" TT added on to the echidna's suggestion, recalling what CB said about Nummy being trapped somewhere in the snowy landscape.

There was a pregnant pause until Knuckles muttered, "Stick to the positives, kid. He has a Chaos emerald; if he's hurt, he'll be fine." He racked his hand through his dreads. "So about Penumbra, so is he going to…freak out if he sees you two?" Knuckles furrowed his brow. "Does he even know that Shadow is his dimensional twin?"

"I-I don't think so…on both accounts," TT said, "He should r-recognize me, so he might be confused, b-but he won't question it. I d-don't think he's mentally ready to question th-things like this…"

"Good." Knuckles nodded. "Because I really don't feel like fighting him if I don't have to."

Tails chuckled. "Wow Knuckles, I thought you would have a little more _drive_ than that."

The echidna got was he was doing immediately. "Don't compare me to him! Just…Just focus on flying or something!" It was debatable whether or not he was pouting.

The foxes snickered at the red one's reaction for a while before calming down. The trio rode in comfortable silence for a while, enjoying the view as they went.

Well, trying to enjoy it. The huge elephant in the room – or whether, on the plane – had a presence that couldn't be ignored. Knuckles wanted it gone, so he reluctantly asked, "What do you think is happening to them right now?"

The twin kitsunes didn't bother to inquire about who he was talking about, because they knew.

"Hopefully nothing." Tails squirmed a bit in his seat, fingers tensed as he steered. "I don't think Eggman would let evil Espio do whatever he wanted to do to them, you know? I don't believe that Eggman would…stoop that low."

"B-But our Espio is…" TT sniffed, picturing all of the horrible things the chameleon could be torturing them with. "Crafty and s-sneaky and…"

"That's probably true, but the doctor most likely has robots crawling all over where they are, and don't forget that Metal Sonic is there too." Knuckles brought up, thinking that anything involved with Eggman was the lesser evil than that chameleon. "I doubt that Espio could put a dent in them." Wishful thinking. "Cream's gotta be in a room together with Silver and Rou – _Rogue_ just waiting until the trade-off. The only torture they are probably going through is hearing the sound of Eggman's irritating laugh every ten seconds."

Tails couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his mouth at that visual. "Now that is true torture."

TT still wasn't convinced, but he didn't voice his concern. Instead, he asked, "B-But wouldn't th-they be confused? Rogue and Silver I m-mean… They don't k-know about our s-situation, and the only Cream they know is d…d-dead."

"Well I guess they had a real eye opener then," Knuckles sighed at that reminder, watching a couple of birds fly by.

"I'm sure Eggman boasted about it and told them about everything, like he always does." Tails replied before tapping his chin, "And I guess Cream would be surprised too, seeing Rogue and all."

"I-If they are p-put together in the f-first place…" TT mumbled, not able to contain his pessimism. He couldn't help it. With Espio involved, nothing but the worst ever happened.

Tails and Knuckles shared a look before the former focused on his doppelganger. "Hey, don't be so down…They're fine!" It sounded like he was convincing himself along with his twin. Tails smiled. "In less than a day, they'll be with us. Don't worry! Always order a glass half full, okay?"

TT nodded, but didn't respond. The conversation dropped off there.

Minutes ticked by until Tails eventually brought the Tornado down to land, making visible tracks in the snow. Knuckles hopped off the wing and sunk ankle-deep into the fluff. He then gazed up at the massive structure they all knew well that caused long shadows that contrasted the blinding white. TT hovered down next to him, examining the softly and slowly beeping tracker in his hands.

"So it's here alright…" Knuckles pondered aloud before peering back at Tails. "What does the radar show?"

Said kit frowned. "It shows that the emerald actually isn't in the building." Tails pointed to something in the distance away from the structure. "It's over there somewhere!"

Amethyst irises squinted in that direction before widening. Knuckles began to jog over to the _giant_ ravine, leaving deep footprints as he went. Hearing swishing behind him, he glanced back to see TT right at his heels and Tails turning off the Tornado so he could follow also. The echidna let out a frustrated puff of air when he looked back in front of him, feeling utterly stupid. This _had_ to be what the Master Emerald was trying to show him earlier. But no, he had to be an idiot and just search the dumb abandoned lab.

Pushing away his foul thoughts, Knuckles went up to the very edge of the insanely deep crevice, peeking down and frowning at the fact that the bottom couldn't be seen. TT grounded himself behind the echidna, the tracker in his grip increasing in frequency. The guardian clenched his fists and steeled himself. "It can't be helped." He took a deep breath and turned to Tails, who was a little braver than his twin and was gazing down as well. "Tails, do you have a flashlight in your plane?"

"Uh…I think so? Let me go check!" The kit then hovered back the way he came.

Knuckles glanced at a nervous looking TT. "You don't have to follow if you aren't comfortable."

The cub's grasp on the tracker increased as he chewed his lip, averting his gaze. "I…" He then nodded to himself. "I want to go. I n-never really…did this type of stuff before."

Knuckles' lips twitched. "It's a good first step as any, especially since its inevitable now. Sonic always brings adventure with him, no matter if you ask for it or not."

TT let out a somewhat anxious laugh and stepped up beside the echidna. He crouched down low to the ground and cautiously peered over the edge. He barely held back a frightened yelp. "Th-That's pretty far…"

A heavy hand patted his shoulder, and TT almost had a heart attack as he scampered away from the edge. Knuckles didn't manage to stifle his mirth. "You can fly, right? It'll be fine. We go in there, find the emerald, and get out. It won't take long. It is _glowing_."

"B-But wouldn't snow be covering it now?"

Knuckles blinked, forgetting that they _were_ surrounded by the stuff, and gestured to the tracker. "Good thing we have that then."

"Found one!" Tails' voice reached their ears as the fox himself approached. He held up the moderately sized flashlight in his hand. "This should do it!" The kid genius turned it on and jumped into the ravine, flying lower and waving the light everywhere.

"Alright, let's go!" Knuckles hopped over the side as well, but instead of freefalling, he rammed his namesakes into the rock and began to steadily climb down.

"You don't want me to carry you?" Tails asked him.

Knuckles shook his head. "I gotta take my anger out on something since I never got to hit that annoying blue motor mouth in the face." He then looked up to see TT still planted where he was up top. "You coming or what?"

TT swallowed the golf ball sized lump in his throat before twirling his tails and taking the leap of faith. Heart rate skyrocketing, he followed the other two more experienced Mobians into the dark, hovering closer and closer to his double the darker it got. He didn't even notice when he decided to grab the braver one's arm. Tails didn't seem to mind though, since he didn't comment on it.

The beeping was getting louder, and Knuckles' grunts were close to not being heard over the echoing noise. "I'm really tempted to just glide down; that'll get us down there faster." The beam of light was pointed at his face, and then was shifted to the blackness below.

Tails furrowed his brow, glancing in between the abyss and the noisy device. "Going by how fast and loud it's beeping, I don't think the emerald is all the way down there." The kit began to search the snow-covered crag around them with the flashlight. "Maybe it landed on a shelf somewhere near here."

Knuckles stopped descending, hanging with one hand plunged into the rock. "You and TT fly around and see where the tracker leads you then."

Tails frowned. "But you'll won't be close to the light though."

The echidna rolled his eyes, smirking. "I'm not scared of the dark Tails, like someone I know."

"I'm not scared of the – what did Sonic tell you?" Tails questioned, indignant. If the beam of light shone on his face, one would see the embarrassed flush on his cheeks. "It was just one night!" he tried to explain, but it wasn't heard over Knuckles' guffaws. He gave up and led the way, hugging the rough walls. "We'll be back! Just hang in there!" He smiled victoriously when the laugh was replaced by a groan.

TT, who was still hanging on to Tails with the tracker in his other hand, smiled at their antics. "Y-You have really good f-friends."

"I use that term loosely…" Tails muttered.

TT tilted his head in confusion. "But I said it?"

Tails cracked a grin. "You are me, remember? So it works."

His twin just stared at him before chuckling. "I guess."

The duo kept sticking close to the wall, making light conversation, until the beeping drastically increased in volume. The foxes checked the jutting rocks and ledges, wiping the layers upon layers of snow that had settled on them. After coming up short after a multitude of swipes, the yellow Mobians were about to give up and keep traveling along the wall, but that was until TT gasped when red light shined through after shoving away some of the fluff.

"We found it…" TT sighed in relief.

"We found it!" Tails yelled louder so Knuckles could hear.

"Great!" the echidna's voice echoed back, "Now get over here before an earthquake hits or something."

The pair, with the glowing gem in Tails' unoccupied hand, were reunited with Knuckles in record time. Said Mobian just grinned jeeringly at them before gripping the emerald – the _eighth_ emerald – and looked it over. "This is just insane," he mumbled before realizing that a certain Mobian was still nowhere to be found. "If we have the emerald, then where's Penumbra?"

Reflexively, the trio glanced down into the darkness below.

TT couldn't stop the tremor that wracked his body. "Oh no…"

Knuckles gave Tails back the emerald, and he took the flashlight. "I'm going down."

"Wait!" Tails opposed, concerned, "We don't know for sure if he's down there! He could've just dropped the emerald or something!"

"A-And he would've gone a-after it if he did…" TT whispered.

Knuckles clicked his tongue. "Then it's settled. I'll glide down, check in this general area while there, and climb back up." Tails opened his mouth to argue, but the guardian shut him down. "We have to be sure, Tails."

The kit eventually nodded. "Okay."

Knuckles gestured upwards. "You two go wait for me at the top. It won't take long." The echidna then detached from the rock, leaving the cubs in near darkness.

"Let's go," Tails said to his double, and they both flew up, not needing a flashlight to guide them back to the snowy edge.

When they made it, the two settled themselves down in the white fluff, not minding the cold seeping through their fur at the moment. Tails gave the ravine one last look before focusing on the red Chaos emerald, shining like it was supposed to. Just by looking at it, the kit wouldn't have known that this was an anomaly.

"So this is the emerald that got you all here, huh?" Tails questioned after TT turned off the little tracker.

The quieter kit shook his head. "A-Actually no...P-Penumbra used the energy inside E-Espio's Omega..."

"Right…" Tails rotated the gem in his grip, half listening to what the other was saying. "It's just so weird! Eight emeralds…I wonder what will happen if Sonic uses all of them to go Super? Would he get more powerful? Or would the unnatural number actually weaken him? Wait…before all of that, how will it react with the other emeralds? So many questions…"

TT didn't answer any of them, not knowing any information the other didn't, and realizing that his doppelganger was just muttering to himself.

About ten minutes later, the two foxes were debating going back into the crevice and rescuing Knuckles when said Mobian climbed his way back into the light, flashlight held in his mouth.

The echidna spat the device out and dusted any specks of white off himself as he stood up. He was alone, so it was obvious that he had found nothing but rocks, snow, and darkness down there.

"Didn't find him," Knuckles said, and TT couldn't decide if he should feel relieved that Nummy hadn't been stranded at the bottom or saddened that he was still lost somewhere. The echidna began to trudge through the snow back to the Tornado. "But I didn't see any trace of blood either, so you might be right Tails."

Said fox nodded. "Yeah, and maybe something distracted him from going after it."

"H-He is easily d-distracted…" TT agreed, thinking back to when Penumbra had first woken up.

"I'm going to call in that we got it." Knuckles fished the communicator out of his glove and put it up to his mouth, but paused as he took in the abandoned lab once more. Violet orbs then trailed over to TT, and they swirled with something the kit couldn't name. "Hey…TT."

Tails' double furrowed his brow. "Yes?"

Knuckles glanced down at the communicator. "I…just want to say that I'm sorry about how I acted before…we knew for sure what you were."

TT thought for a moment before giving a small smile. "It's okay. Y-You were just worried. I u-understand."

"Knuckles? You're apologizing for something?" Tails giggled. "I bet Sonic would've paid anything to be here right now."

"Oh shut up," the guardian clipped, pressing the button on the side of the communicator. "We got the other red Chaos emerald. No sign of Penumbra though."

There was a long pause that none of the trio expected until a voice came through. _"Uh…cool. Just-"_

" _IF YOU HAVE ACHIEVED YOUR MISSION, COME BACK TO RENDEZVOUS AT THE HOME AND WAIT FOR THE REST TO ARRIVE."_

" _Yeah please come. I don't care what Shadow said, this robot makes me SEVERELY uncomfortable."_

" _I AM NOT A DANGER TO YOU."_

" _Right now you're not!"_

"Guess VC and Omega need more time to warm up to each other," Tails uttered, clearly entertained.

TT stayed quiet, trying to disassociate this robotic voice from the robot that was on evil Espio's side.

Knuckles had more troubling thoughts. "Wait, so no one else is there, and nobody is using their communicators?" He threw a hand in the air. "What's the point of _having_ them then? Amy's group probably dropped it in the water, I bet Sonic _lost_ the damn thing, and who _knows_ what bat-girl's group is doing right now!"

TT's namesakes twitched at his increasing levels of nervosity. "W-What if something happened to them?"

Tails sighed. "There's nothing to worry about. Unfortunately, Sonic loses things all the time, Amy and Rosy have to deal with _two_ Charmys, and well, Shadow and Rouge aren't the most…"

"Reliable?" Knuckles scoffed.

"Not exactly that…"

" _We'll get some feedback eventually. Don't worry too much,"_ VC suggested, but they all weren't completely calm despite their facades. _"So are you comin' back now?"_

"Yeah." Knuckles hopped on the wing of the Tornado, and the cubs got the hint, climbing into their respective seats. Tails started up the plane. "I've been away from the Master Emerald for too long."

" _I HAVE KEPT IT SAFE FOR YOU."_

"Thanks for that."

" _IT IS AN EASY JOB. MAYBE WHEN I AM NOT NEEDED FOR MORE MISSIONS, I CAN-"_

Knuckles cut the connection.

* * *

Espio knew that he had to be careful here. He didn't know the exact reason why his double had sought him out, but he had a hunch that one wrong move could be the end of him. He had to be hyperaware at all times because of the fact that he couldn't see his opponent, and that he couldn't disappear as well.

His corrupted doppelganger had enough deaths under his belt; Espio _refused_ to help him add Vector to it.

Then a concerning thought made his brain scatter.

 _What happened to the others?_

Pain blossomed on the side of his cheek that made his breath hitch. Espio fought to refocus on the situation at hand as he reached up and felt the gash made by a thrown kunai. Blood was dripping down his face, and he knew that one more mistake like that would cost him his life.

"You didn't even make an attempt to dodge." His voice sounded from the left of him, and amber irises snapped over in that direction, keeping his mind clear. All he saw were bushes and trees, but he didn't dare let his guard down. "I wanted to have fun with this fight, but you're making it boring for me."

 _He's cocky_ , Espio thought, palming his own kunai. He would use his weapon as a shield if he had too. _That has its pros and its cons. It'll be easier to poke as his pride, but then again, I'm not sure if getting him riled up is the best decision here._

"If you don't want a boring fight-" Espio wiped his face again with his unoccupied hand, looking for any sign of the other's precise position. "-then show yourself. At the moment, I'm nothing but a living target. Having a fair fight should _entertain_ you."

There was a jeering laugh, and Espio zeroed in on an area by the nearest tree. The voice responded, "That would have probably worked on anyone else. However, we are _ninja._ They thirst for situations like this; ones with a _certainty_ of success." Espio did nothing but grit his teeth, not letting the other's words get to him. "And besides…if you _really_ want me to make this a 'fair' fight, then let me take out one of your eyes. That should level the playing field, hm?"

This time, Espio saw the sharp weapon hurled at him. The chameleon quickly dodged, avoiding the projectile that would have surely blinded him on his left side. The ninja then threw a kunai right at the spot he was sure his invisible adversary was standing. There was a quiet clang, and his weapon fell to the ground, useless.

 _He blocked it with his own._ Espio stood still again, waiting for the next move. _Birds of a feather…_

The chuckles were humorless. "You didn't like that idea, did you? It is as bad as it sounds."

Espio went through strategies quickly in his head – _Distance attacks aren't favorable, I have to get close_ – but the eerie silence that surrounded him pushed the ninja to empty his thoughts. There was no noise except the gentle wind ruffling the nearby leaves and the beeping of the nearby tracker that was somewhat difficult to ignore.

The chameleon's muscles tensed as the feeling of anticipation built up in his stomach. He kept his eyes open, paying attention to every movement of the plants around him.

The only warning he got was the very _very_ subtle crunching of the blades of grass not one foot away from him. However, by the time he heard that, it was too late. Espio grunted in pain when he was punched in the stomach, making him double over. He barely had time to recover from that before he was knocked to the ground with a swift and powerful kick.

As soon as Espio hit the ground, he rolled away, hearing the impact of what he assumed was heel with the ground right where he had landed. _He did my job for me,_ Espio thought as he hopped up and got his feet back under him. He then grasped another kunai carefully positioned in his other glove. _I have to cause him damage. Maintaining invisibility gets considerably harder when severely injured. Swiping him once should be enough to gain the upper hand…_

Believe it or not, Espio didn't want to kill his attacking doppelganger – even though the twin's objective was clearly the opposite. The evil one was needed for answers and then sent for a _long_ stay in prison. All Espio needed to do was knock him out and disarm him. A hard hit to the head or a pinch to the neck would be sufficient. Once Espio could get the other visible, of course.

Which was easier said than done.

Espio silently gasped when his horn was suddenly grabbed, and he was yanked forward right into a fist that connected with his eye. Pain reverberated throughout his system – even though the chameleon was thankful that it was a fist and not a blade. His mirror image apparently liked to play with his food, no matter what kind – but Espio took advantage of the situation. Knowing that his enemy had to be right in front of him, he shot out an arm and slashed what he believed was the other's side.

He was right, for his twin staggered backwards and flickered into view, hissing under his breath and holding his heavily leaking side. A noticeable stream of blood was dripping to the ground below and staining it; that wound would need stitches. It was deep; deeper that he had intentioned, but he couldn't complain.

Espio then met the other's working eye, and he was nearly taken aback with the amount of rage present there. Nearly. The chameleon pounced and smashed his enemy's ribcage with his foot, making the bleeding reptile fall flat on his back, coughing up red. He most likely had a broken rib. He then sat back up with a grimace, but Espio didn't let him do more than that. He cracked his elbow against the wounded one's temple, hoping that would be enough to knock him out.

The corrupted reptile rolled from the hit and ended up on his stomach. He tried to disappear, but his mind must've been scattered, because nothing happened other than a tremble caused by the slash opening wider on his side from being agitated.

"You lack focus." Espio shifted his weight. "Once you lose your grip on the situation, you panic." He ran over to the downed Mobian and got behind him, going for option two since the hit didn't deem his adversary unconscious. "That will be your downfall."

The other him attempted to get up to retaliate, but Espio pinched his neck before he could scramble up. The evil doppelganger fell back to the ground, unmoving.

Espio willed his heart rate to decrease as he took a deep breath. He wiped more blood off his cheek, taking a moment to collect himself. Amber orbs took in the one lying at his feet. The one that had attacked Vanilla, took Cream, killed Cheese, killed the _other_ Cream, and had taken even more prisoners. The one behind all of this. The one who had tried to _end his life._

The ninja turned away when anger began to bubble up inside, thinking that he would do something drastic if he kept looking at that one-eyed menace. The next thing he did was glance at his fallen friend. Vector was there off to the side, unaware to all that happened. Espio clenched his fists and forced himself to focus on something else. Like the Chaos emerald. His twin wasn't holding it, so he had hidden it somewhere where he had first disappeared. The tracker was still beeping, so it had to be near.

A scream then pushed its way out of Espio's throat when he was stabbed once…twice…three times.

The kunai went through the back of his shoulders, both of them, creating a pain that the chameleon couldn't describe. His body froze up, and he couldn't move as he endured the agony. Then he was knifed right in the side, the action flying way past his pain threshold.

When a blade was pressed up against Espio's neck, his legs barely had enough strength to support him anymore.

"Such malpractice," the haunting voice whispered closely. Espio could hardly hear the other's snickers as he shouted out in complete _agony._ "Too soft, and wrong location." There was a cough, and Espio's shoulder had foreign blood on it that mixed with his own. "C-Close, but no cigar. _That will be your downfall,_ " the voice mocked.

Espio managed to quiet himself, biting his lip and tasting copper in his mouth. His whole body was trembling in pain, and that was almost overriding all of his systems. However, past all of the fright, pain, and blood (so much, _too_ much), Espio couldn't help but feel the kunai shaking against his throat as well.

It could be wishful thinking, or his overstimulated brain hallucinating, but he needed a miracle. He _refused_ to die. He couldn't. Because who knew who else would if he did.

"A-Any last words, _other me_?"

Espio attempted to ignore those words and the fluids flowing down his body as he pieced his brain back together to think. _H-He's shaking. He h-has to be weak as well…s-slower reflexes…n-not expecting…_ This had to work, or Espio was dead where he stood.

Summoning strength that he was sure had left him at the start of the violent attack, the chameleon quickly wedged his fingers in the space between his collarbone in the other's arm. He shoved it away, safe from the deadly twist of a wrist, and he didn't wait for his evil double to react. Espio whirled around and launched himself at the other, tackling him to the ground.

There was a scream when Espio purposefully dug his knee into the corrupted one's split side, the chameleon chewing on his tongue to keep himself from doing the same when the fall irritated the bleeding muscles of his back.

Espio was about to make a move, but a thumb was jabbed into his own open side and his whole body violently twitched, almost becoming limp. His mirror image took this time to flip their positions; now Espio was helpless on the bottom being straddled. Blades of grass dug into his gashes, and he felt tears build up in his eyes without permission.

There was movement above him, and he blinked away the blurriness just in time to see the point of a kunai being brought down on his right eye. For the first time in a long while, Espio panicked. He let out a surprised yell before bringing up his hands and stopping the other from gouging his eye out.

Espio grabbed his double's arms, the limbs shaking as they supported weight that didn't want to be halted. The evil ninja pushed down harder, a frustrated sneer on his face. "You'll g-get to see what it's like! _Feel_ what it's like!" It was clear that the other was becoming desperate. Blood-thirsty. There was a venom-filled laugh. "No, how about I blind you c-completely! Let you _suffer_ before I t-tear your throat out!"

"You're not going to win this!" Espio panted out, wincing when blood was coughed right in his face. The trembling in his arms increased, and he turned his head to avoid the sharp tip, but it just kept following him. "If you don't l-leave now, we both die! You _will_ bleed out."

His only response was a poisonous growl as the kunai was slowly pushed closer and closer.

Espio's pulse was in his ears as his adrenaline pumped. The blade was less than an inch away from him now, and the ninja was beginning to sweat. In a last ditch effort to get rid of the horrible threat, Espio bucked up before twisting his whole body to the side, sending the one on top of him in the same direction also. His enemy grunted as he landed, blinking in shock, and Espio scrambled away from him, body protesting every movement.

He just stared as the other regained his bearings. Espio couldn't keep in the pained hiss when he struggled to return to his feet. He was breathing harshly, watching as his doppelganger slowly sat up. He had to stop this, now. "J-Just go," Espio commanded softly, "You will die if you don't g-get help." Yes, Espio was in agony at the moment, having multiple slashes and holes in his body, but the other him was in worse shape. The gash in his side was just tearing wider and wider, and by the blood the evil one kept on coughing up, he had internal bleeding that could prove catastrophic.

Espio wasn't worried about the other's wellbeing however; he was concerned about his own. He was sure that his double wouldn't want to die since he apparently had things planned. At least, Espio hoped that that was the case.

The twin hacked up more red, clutching his chest. He breathed deeply for a moment before wiping away the carmine around his lips and chin. He then brought his hand down to the severe cut in his side, and his fingers were immediately covered in the coppery liquid. Stained teeth were gritted, and Espio's eyes widened when a projectile was hurled his way.

The ninja blocked it with the kunai he managed to hold onto, but then he had to throw it when this double had aimed for Vector's head. Both weapons clattered to the ground, one of them missing its fatal mark.

Espio observed warily as the other stood up, using a sturdy tree for assistance. The chameleon knew that if his double attacked again, it would be a fight to the death. The evil one, knowing that he would perish if he continued, would be radiating desperation, and Espio wouldn't be in any type of condition to defend himself. Espio hoped, wished, and internally _begged_ that his other self viewed his life as more important than finishing this fight.

A single amber iris bored into his own, cold and hard.

"The outcome…will be d-different…next time."

His doppelganger gave him a heated glare before turning and running as fast as he could manage away from the scene. Espio just watched and waited for him to come back, for another hurled kunai, for anything that would make his day way worse.

When nothing happened, the chameleon sunk to his knees and leaned forward on his hands, letting out a relieved breath. Even though he was severely wounded, he was safe. For now. He wasn't losing as much fluids as the other him, but without some kind of medical assistance, his condition would worsen.

Espio just stayed in that position for a couple minutes, hearing the continuous beeping of the tracker. His twin must've left the Chaos emerald here. Either he didn't want it in the first place, or he just completely forgot about it. Espio was leaning toward the latter answer.

Letting out a heavy exhale, the chameleon figured that it was time to find the gem and search for the others. Espio peered over at the unconscious Vector, deeming that the rest were in the same condition as he. He refused to picture another possible outcome.

Wondering if he could bring the croc back to his conscious state, Espio got up, wobbled a bit, and shuffled over to his friend and co-worker. The ninja squatted and panted as he sat the limp one up against a tree trunk. Espio shook him gently at first, then harder and harder. When that didn't do it, the chameleon slapped the other hard across the face, the hit echoing throughout the area.

At first, there was nothing, but then Vector began to groan, fluttering his eyes open. Espio backed up some, wincing in pain, to give the other some room. The bigger reptile groaned some more as his brow furrowed. "What…" he began as his gaze lost the glassy look. Vector blinked and rubbed his forehead. "What happened to me? I just-" Then the croc took in Espio's condition, and his body suddenly froze. "Espio! Oh CHAOS! What happened to _you_?!"

"I…" Espio let out a shaky sigh. "The other me found us. H-He knocked you out, and him and I f-fought. We're b-both heavily injured. He fled."

Vector could only stare with his mouth open, and his facial expression twisted into a rage-filled one. "He…He DID this to you?!" The croc then surveyed the area, seeing the red painting the surrounding green. The bigger reptile stood up and held out a hand. Espio took it, body trembling in agony when the movement disagreed with it. The anger washed away from Vector's face only to be replaced with worry. He walked around the purple one to see what kind of injuries he had, and Espio heard a gasp. "We need to get you help, asap!"

"W-We have to find…the others…" Espio forced out as his world tilted on its axis. Maybe he was losing blood faster than he thought…

Vector gasped as he started to fall. The croc caught him before picking him up. "I gotcha!"

Espio squirmed in his grip, his wounds being rubbed the wrong way, until he realized that there was nothing he could do. He could endure this. Not like he had a choice anyway.

"We have to find them quick." Vector's gaze swept the area. "But how in the heck are we going to do that? The tracker's here! And the Chaos emerald…?"

His last words were a question, and Espio slowly nodded. "He…l-left it here…"

"How nice of him," Vector bit out.

Espio's lids began to droop. "Shouldn't be…too h-hard to find…"

"I've learned to not trust those words!" Vector strained out a laugh.

The chameleon didn't have the strength to answer.

Vector's laugh cut off for two reasons. One, his friend was _clearly_ in trouble and needed help stat, and two, there was rustling that was getting louder.

The larger member of the Chaotix held his breath, wondering if the other chameleon had come back to finish what he'd started. Espio's body tensed at the sound, wanting but not able to tell his friend to run.

The tension built up so much that Vector was trembling. From rage or fright, Espio didn't know. But then they both felt a little idiotic when a frog jumped out of the bushes, followed by faces that both reptiles were glad to see.

The others were happy as well.

Rosy sighed in relief. "I'm _so_ glad that we followed the sound!"

"And Froggy!" a jolly Big added.

However, at the actual sight of their surroundings, the smiles disappeared.

Amy took a shaky step forward, eyes widening as she took everything in. Then she focused on the barely conscious Espio. She gasped, a hand covering her mouth. "Oh no…" She turned to her equally as distressed twin. "The evil Espio must've…"

Rosy nodded solemnly. "He knocked us out to get to…" She bit her lip. "He's just so _horrible…_ "

"Espio!" Charmy cried, flying over to the purple Mobian. "Are you dying? Please don't die!" Tears filled his eyes. " _Please_ don't!"

"He's _not_ going to die, Charmy!" Vector consoled, "He just needs help. We gotta get outta here." He then focused on Rosy. "I think we should tell everyone else what happened."

"I wish we could." Rosy sighed before holding out a _very_ broken communicator. "He must've smashed it…"

"Just GREAT!" Vector shouted, feeling blood drip down his body. He glanced at his lethargic friend. "How the heck are we going to tell them?" he asked quieter.

"Well, VC," at Vector's confused look, Amy elaborated, "the other you, has a communicator too. He's at Sonic's house. After Espio gets fixed up at the hospital, we can go there and get ahold of the others that way."

"Can't we just go there first?" Rosy asked, "If we can get Shadow, he can come back and heal him!"

"But if we do that, then he might not get his emeralds in time! Also, everyone will know what happened, and they'll be distracted. They might get hurt!" Amy refuted, and Rosy hesitated.

"We can argue about it on the way back!" Vector interjected, suddenly running in the direction of the lake and the jeep. "We gotta get goin'!"

Rosy blinked and held out her arm. "But wait! What about the Chaos emeral-"

"I got it…" She turned her head to see a gloomy CB grasping both the tracker and the dark blue gem. The bee then flew after the reptiles when Charmy gestured him to. Not wanting to lose them, Rosy followed at their heels, avoiding the spatters of red on the ground.

Amy was about to go, but then she focused on a frowning Big who was holding his pet. "Just go home, Big, okay? I really don't want you mixed up in this mess…"

He nodded at her, giving a small smile. "Okay! Just be safe! I don't like people messing with my friends…"

Amy grinned. "Roger!"

Big watched her go, and then petted his little frog. He held the amphibian up to his face, patting the animal's head. "Good job with jumping on my face to wake me up, little buddy! You made things a lot easier for us and my friends!"

Froggy didn't answer. Instead, he slipped out of the cat's hands and hopped away.

Big gasped and waddled after him. "No Froggy! Come back!"

* * *

"Cheek."

"Arm."

"Leg."

"…Stomach."

"Foot."

"Close! Look, I'm pointing at both of them!"

"…Feet."

"Yay! That's the most you've guessed ever!" Cream clapped her hands and beamed at her roommate, but her enthusiasm for the situation waned at the strained smile on the striped one's muzzle. The bunny lowered her hands to her lap, worried about her friend. He had been withdrawn ever since she woke up. She just wanted to see him happy again, so she didn't ask about it. But maybe that's what she had to do…

"Mr. Penumbra…" She scooted closer to the hedgehog to make sure she held his attention. He had been staring at the floor a lot lately. When maroon irises met with chocolates, Cream continued, "What happened while I was asleep? Why are you all sad?"

"Why sad?" Nummy repeated, and the rabbit nodded, knowing that those were the words he would lock on to. The hedgie's gaze dropped to his hands, looking sadder than ever. Cream wanted to give him a hug, but he shook his head. "Mean."

The bunny was taken aback. She didn't know what to say. "W-What? I'm mean?"

Penumbra's eyes widened at that. "No! No no!" He caved in and gave her a reassuring hug before letting go. "Cream – um…You nice! Good friend!" To the child's surprise, he gestured to himself. "Penum…" He trailed off, and Cream could see the gears turning in his head, wanting to find the correct way to fix his grammar mistake. "I mean!" Nummy slumped, almost curling into himself. "I mean…hurt friends."

"You hurt…oh no…" Cream didn't know who else could possibly be here trapped like them, but she felt bad for them and for her friend. He didn't want to hurt people, but evil Espio was making him! He was controlling Mr. Penumbra with that remote! Determined to persuade the other, Cream took both of Nummy's hands and squeezed them, wanting to be as comforting as possible. "It's not your fault! It's evil Espio's! You didn't hurt them, he did! You're nice Mr. Penumbra…not mean!"

The hedgehog cocked his head, brow furrowed as he absorbed the words. "I not…mean? I no hurt?"

Cream nodded, expression open and pleasant. "That's right! It's all Espio!" When she got a real smile, she believed her mission was accomplished. Her mind then wandered to the other people that were here too, becoming concerned. "Who did evil Espio take you to?"

Before Penumbra had a chance to answer, his ears perked up at a sound Cream couldn't hear. But she knew that it wasn't good. It was never good.

A couple seconds later, she was hearing it too. It sounded like a mini-airplane was coming their way. Cream couldn't explain it as anything else. She wished that there was a window in their room so that she could see outside, but there was nothing.

The bunny jumped when their door was slid open, and she unconsciously huddled into Penumbra's side as the hedgehog slowly positioned herself in front of her. But he wasn't growling. He was just watching this time.

In the doorway was Omega, the big red and black robot that had been friends with Mr. Shadow and Ms. Rouge, but now, he was holding… Cream gasped at the state of the purple chameleon in the mech's arms. Enemy or not, the bunny was shocked at how much pain the reptile had to be in. Blood was everywhere, and Espio seemed barely awake…

"C-Come…" The chameleon coughed, and Cream covered her mouth in horror when more red splattered on his chest. "H-Heal me…"

Even though Penumbra looked just as surprised as the bunny was, he moved forward at the other's words. He crawled up carefully until he was in front of the massive bot, resisting the urge to dismember the machine. The hedgehog focused on Espio and brought up his hands, hovering them over the large gash in his side. Energy flowed into his hands and then out again.

Espio breathed out a, "Good job."

Nummy kept himself from clawing at the wound.

* * *

He did it.

It took a lot of work and time – oh _Chaos_ did it take a long time – but he did it.

Not without injuries of course, but he really wasn't surprised.

Well, no, he took that back. He was _really_ surprised, just for the wrong reason.

He knew that he wasn't coming out of it unscarred, but he thought that it would…hurt more.

Broken knuckles and ripped skin weren't something to laugh at; however, he barely felt a thing. Maybe it was because his whole body was on fire.

Probably that.

It felt like every inch of his person was in agonizing pain, so maybe him doing what he did just…blended in with the other pain.

Which was great. He couldn't have done it if the pain hadn't blended, and well…if the blood hadn't been a good lubricant.

His left hand was free from the cuffs. Granted, his strength in it had dramatically decreased, but hey, it still worked. That was good enough. Now he could move his arms freely. The first thing he did was pop his elbow back into place.

…no pain. Huh. Or maybe, too much pain to register? Was his brain overloaded? Hell if he knew. It didn't really matter.

He reached up to untie the mouth-drying cloth gagging him and winced when cuts on his arm stung with the movement. Okay, he wasn't totally invincible. He still felt…something.

He didn't continue with the task. He should leave it on so the next time Penumbra came in here, it would be a surprise. He was going to fight back.

Fighting Penumbra…Funny how that happened, huh?

He knew that he wasn't gonna win; his feet were still _chained_ for Chaos' sake, but now he won't have to take it lying down.

He couldn't wait to see their faces.

Priceless.

Feeling kinda bad for Nummy, but hell, he deserved it for listening to whatever the devil had to say.

 _Dancing with the devil will get you burned._

Ha.

He knew all about that. He was burning right now.

Silver should've killed Espio. He should've _let_ Silver kill Espio.

See the life leave him.

He would've been traumatized; he would've gotten over it.

One death was better than endless torture.

Definitely.

… _wonder if I'm going to die for this?_

Probably not. If Espio wanted to kill him, he would've already been dead.

He was going to be here for a while, might as well have some fun.

Oh. The door's opening.

He hid his hands behind him.

He couldn't help the _glee_ he felt when he saw the devil himself walk in.

Espio squatted down in front of him and forcefully yanked the gag down. "I want to hear _every_ scream you make."

He smiled, pulling at his numerous facial bruises. "I won't be screaming."

Espio narrowed his eyes and studied him, hand still gripping the cloth.

Big mistake, dude.

He lunged and sunk his teeth into the reptile's forearm, grinning as the copper taste rushed into his mouth.

Espio stumbled back and fell because of his unexpected weight, yelling in pain.

 _Who's screaming now?_

He let go, quickly looming over the chameleon's face. He chuckled as he punched.

And punched.

And punched.

More blood on his knuckles. _Finally_ not his own.

About time.

He didn't let Espio speak, punching him in the mouth (with his good hand, mind you) and splitting his lip.

He aimed for the reptile's covered eye socket and reveled in the resulting panicked shout.

"A-Attack!"

Aw. Some words escaped. Bummer.

He was tackled away.

There was a heavy weight on him now, making his bruises throb and his gashes grow.

He laughed.

Penumbra didn't attack immediately.

"Good job," the hedgehog whispered.

Rogue just laughed harder as the hedgehog tore into his side.

* * *

 **Next chapter…who's up for a race?**


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer- I own nothing.**

 **A/N: So sorry for the wait guys! Life is the biggest bully ever, like** _ **jeez**_ **. To make up for it, this chapter's super-duper long! I'm not gonna talk too much since y'all been waiting for this, so…enjoy!**

 **Chapter 24- What did you do to him?**

" _Right. We'll radio back in once we find the emerald."_

" _We will too. See you."_

Mephiles furrowed his brow when the conversation between Knuckles and this world's Espio ended. The striped hedgehog fiddled with the communicator in his hands, given to him when Sonic amped up the speed in order to do complicated tricks and maneuvers over hills. Mephiles was halfway submerged into the speed devil's shadow, wind rushing through his quills as they passed through the blurred landscape.

Sonic was whooping and hollering with every jump and hop he made beside him (the sun was positioned on the right side of the blue hero, so naturally, Mephiles was on his left), but Mephy was focused on the reptile's voice that had been projected through the device.

Espio sounded nice enough. There was no malice hidden in his tone whatsoever. He was the complete opposite of the chameleon Mephiles had the misfortune of meeting, which was more than reassuring. With him on the good side, there would be way less stress and complications.

The shadow 'hog glanced over and up at the azure hedgie at his side, seeing the mirth-filled emerald orbs and the carefree smile. Mephiles then looked away, comparing that visual with the glares and the scowls another hedgehog seemingly had permanently etched into his face. Mephy was glad that this Sonic was pleasant to be around. Less complicated.

However, while Mephiles wasn't particularly happy that they were inevitably going to meet up with the other speedster again, he wasn't…as bothered with it as he should be. That dirty-mouthed and violent Mobian could be a headache – literally – but maybe…maybe Mephiles just wanted something to happen. Like a change. Believe it or not, he was concerned. But any frien…aquaintan… _ally_ (and that was still pushing it) would, wouldn't they? It was obvious that the other Sonic was still caught up on his past, and now that his whole _world_ was gone, it had to be hard on him.

Sonic was keeping everything bottled up inside, everything except the rage. That was going anywhere and everywhere. That couldn't be healthy, and him just being alone isn't going to fix that problem. It hadn't all the years Sonic had been by himself.

Shadow had probably made some progress, considering that Sonic hadn't straight up attacked him for the red emerald he had. Maybe he didn't hate everyone like he claimed.

So would encouraging him to work together show him that it was nice to not hate people all of the time? The traveling pair had the tracker while the angrier hero didn't. Mephy's partner could make amends (and hopefully vice versa) and get the violent one to open up. That's what Mephiles wished anyway. But then again…that first intervention didn't go as well as it should have…

"You alright down there?" Mephiles blinked, somewhat startled as he focused on Sonic. Said hedgehog chuckled as he ran. "You were makin' the same face Tails makes when he's thinkin' _way_ too hard about somethin'. Or when he's constipated." Mephy's nose scrunched up at that, but he couldn't help the amused grin that grew on his muzzle. Sonic snickered. "He ate too much mac and cheese one day. Basically had to make him drink prune juice while he was in the bathroom." The striped hedgehog felt bad for the kit; however, the laughs coming from the other made his grin grow. "He won't make that mistake again. So anyway…" Sonic's gaze turned curious. "Anythin' on your mind?"

Mephiles cocked his head at him before shaking it and shrugging. He didn't really need to explain his thoughts; Sonic would probably carry out his mental plans without even knowing it.

The blue hedgie just hummed, staring at him for an extra second before paying attention to the surrounding landscape and sidestepping a lone tree. "If you say so."

Mephiles rose a brow at that little once-over he had received, wondering what was that about.

Sonic caught his expression, and his peach lips twitched. "I was just thinkin' about your power there. It's pretty cool, goin' fast without really needin' to and stuff." The hedgehog then turned his head away, and Mephy felt the suddenly awkward air around them. What was going on? Sonic glanced at him again, smiling, but there was a hint of uncertainty there that the striped one could identify. "Do you uh…have any other powers like that?"

Mephiles furrowed his brow. The question wasn't complex or anything, just the tone it was asked.

At his hesitation, Sonic took the moment to elaborate. "Y'know, like do you have time powers, can you change forms…shoot deadly beams…anything like that?"

Mephy slowly shook his head no, and things almost instantly returned back to normal. He was horribly confused. The question of 'Why?' was clear in his expression.

Sonic scratched his nose and gave him a lopsided smile. "Just askin'. Hey look!" The speedster pointed to a wide dried up riverbed in the distance that was quickly coming up. As they got closer, Mephiles could tell it was pretty deep as well. "Dare me to jump that?" Sonic flickered his emerald orbs over to him and spoke again before the other had a chance to respond, speeding up all the while. "I'm gonna to it anyway!"

The shadow hedgie absently nodded. He couldn't stop the hero from doing it. Mephy was more focused on that change of topic for a moment before letting out a silent sigh, leaving it be. That subject had to be uncomfortable to talk about...for some reason, and he wasn't going to…

Oh… Wait. The _other_ Mephiles… The one that Shadow told everyone about. The one who had actually killed this Sonic…

Yeah, he was going to leave that topic alone.

* * *

"Alright, we made it!"

Sonic slowed down to a stop once he past Metal City's limits, his green gaze sweeping as much of the big and shiny city he could see. The hero saw the speedy cars and the roads he had raced on plenty of times to almost know them by heart.

The blue speedster peered over to his partner who was still attached to his shadow. Mephiles was taking in the bustling city with much less awe than Sonic expected of someone who had never seen this place before. It was pretty futuristic. So maybe Mephy had been here earlier?

"This isn't your first time here, I take it?" Sonic asked.

After glancing at a car that was clearly speeding, Mephiles nodded at him, a noticeable frown on his face.

The hero saw this and tapped his chin. "Had some bad experiences, huh?" Mephy nodded again. "So were you uh…dropped here from Chaos Control?" The striped one's head bobbed a third time. Sonic put a hand on his hip, smirking. "Well, that's good I guess. I don't have to give ya a tour of the place. That would've been a huge timewaster!"

Sonic definitely knew that they would find both of their target Chaos emeralds before the trade-off, but hey, better safe than sorry.

The speed demon reached into the cuff of his glove and palmed the tracker. It was silent. _Guess it's time we get to searching._ "Welp, let's go do what we came here for!" Sonic scanned the area once more, thinking that to start their little search, they should track down a certain trio. It was a first step as any. He turned to a listening Mephy. "Okay, first things first! We should go find us a few birds. They might have one or know where one is. If not, well…"

Sonic trailed off at the other's wide eyes, shining with recognition.

"Whoa wait, have you met them before?"

Mephiles let out an inaudible sigh, looking somewhat tense, but he communicated a yes anyway. Sonic knew that it had been a bad experience just from Mephy's expression. Those birds could make someone's day worse if they really tried. Before the speedster could formulate a response, Mephiles mouthed out, "They have an emerald."

Sonic perked up. "They do? Well let's go find them! Should be easy enough!" He was about to take off, but then he paused, peeking back at Mephiles with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "We gotta hurry, because there's no way I'm goin' to let my twin beat us to it, definitely not since he doesn't have a tracker! I refuse to have my pride take that big of a hit." He chuckled, and the striped hedgie just shook his head in jest, seeming a bit better about having to meet the birds again.

With that being said, Sonic took off in a brisk jog on the sidewalk and Mephiles sunk all the way down in his shadow. Sonic wondered for a split second, but then he figured it had to be because having someone coming out of the ground like that wasn't exactly normal. Mephy wanted to keep people calm…either that or he just didn't want to be stared at.

The azure hero kept the tracker in his hand, waiting for it to start beeping as well as waiting to hear the telltale signs of Extreme Gear in use. Both at the same time would be great.

Ten minutes had passed, and things weren't looking good. Sonic knew that this was a big city, but they should have come across _something_ by now. Even his doppelganger was nowhere to be seen. Did he even make it here yet? Sonic knew that his twin had to wash off somewhere; the other him had a _huge_ head start though.

Sonic linked his fingers behind his head and glanced up at the drifting clouds overhead. _If I was a Babylon Rogue, where would I be…? Hopefully not far away, because that would be a pain if they are – ack!_

The hedgehog stumbled backwards and landed hard on the pavement, rubbing his abused forehead.

"Gah…Shit…" Sonic heard his own voice groan, but it didn't come out of his mouth.

Suddenly alert, the hero glanced up to see his twin also holding the now tender spot above his eyes; however, his double had managed to stay on his feet.

There was then a hand in his face, and Sonic looked over to see Mephiles at his side, offering some help. Those wary reptilian irises were trained solely on Sonic's doppelganger though.

Sonic smiled appreciatively as he took the other's hand and hopped to his feet. "Thanks for the pick me up!" Mephiles cracked a grin at that word choice, but then the lighthearted expression melted away when a heated glare was sent in his direction.

"What the hell?" The other azure hedgie spat, snapping his rage-filled gaze onto Sonic. His quills began to bristle. "Why are you two _here_?"

Sonic, not affected by his twin's body language at all, vaguely noticed how Mephy positioned himself slightly behind him. The other speedster saw this as well, and he clenched his fists subtly in anger.

Seeing that, Sonic rose a brow before smirking. "The same reason you're here. We've got an emerald to find!" The hero was aware how the tracker in his hand remained silent in his double's presence (he had left his own cyan emerald at the house). His smirk widened. "Especially since it's clearly still up for grabs."

The other him was ready to explode. "I _knew_ Stripes would pull this type of shit!" He took a threatening step forward, getting into Sonic's face. Sonic grunted when a finger was jabbed into his chest. " _I'm_ finding this emerald, got it? Go back to where you came from, and things won't get ugly."

"Wasn't that what happened last time in the mountains?" Sonic teased, brushing the finger away. "And who ended up on the floor?" Sonic's expression then hardened marginally. "Listen pal, after what you did to Tails and Knuckles…just be lucky that I'm not the vengeful type. Seriously not cool."

The double crossed his arms, an irritated aura around him. "Whatever. That win was a fluke. If-"

Sonic waved him off and felt the other's glare intensify. "Yeah yeah, if we fought again, you'd win. You're starting to sound like Eggy." He put a hand on his hip. "We didn't come here to fight. We have the same goal here, and maybe we can have a bit of fun if-"

"There's _no_ way in hell I'm going to work with _you_ ," he snarled, "I'm going to find _my_ emerald, so back off!"

Sonic shrugged and grinned. "You can try… _I_ think we're gonna get to it first since we have a little leg up though."

"The hell are you talking about? You don't-"

Sonic chuckled. "I don't know about you, but I'm sure a tracker pretty much lets me destroy any competition."

"A tracker?! What the f-" The twin glanced over at an observing Mephiles and sneered before quickly leaning over and swiping the device in the striped one's hands. He smirked nastily as he tossed the item up and down haughtily, clearly gloating. " _Who_ has the tracker now?"

Sonic's grin never left his face. He held up the actual tracker in his hands and shook it a bit. "I still do. What you have is a communicator. Nice try though!"

The doppelganger focused on the radio and then on the item Sonic was basically taunting him with. Gritting his teeth, he smashed the device against the concrete and stomped on it, growling all the while.

Sonic blinked, not expecting that. "I think you need some counselin', other me."

"Give me that effing tracker!" The twin yelled as he lunged at the other blue hedgie.

Mephiles, who had been staring in shock at the hedgehog destroying the communicator, saw the complete ire in the angry one's eyes and knew exactly what the speedster was about to do. They really shouldn't cause a scene here (well, more of a scene. Two Sonics in one place by itself was an attention grabber), and fighting was just going to prolong their time in the city.

Hoping to defuse the situation, Mephiles swiftly stepped between the twins and shoved the attacking Sonic away, catching him off-guard.

Confused emerald irises blinked before they raged like wildfire.

Mephy stood his ground and signed, **"Stop! Just stop!"** The one he was facing actually paused for a moment. **"This isn't some game! There isn't any reason to fight! We can do this** _ **together**_ **. You can take the emerald after we find it, because attacking him now is completely pointless! Did you forget exactly why we're doing this?"**

Silence was his answer, and Mephiles feared that his little bout of bravery might have gotten him killed.

The hedgehog behind him watched in awe. "Whoa… You know sign language? That's awesome!" He focused on his double, who was totally expressionless. "What did he say?"

No answer, but Sonic didn't push, seeing that something was happening between his twin and Mephiles. He didn't exactly know though…well, the other him wasn't attacking anymore, so maybe Mephy said something good enough to break his double's stubborn streak.

The quiet duo were just staring at each other, Mephiles hoping that his nervousness wasn't showing, and the twin clenching his fists.

After a moment, the doppelganger sneered at the striped rodent, but Mephiles wasn't going to back down. They needed to make some kind of progress, and constantly butting heads would be doing the complete opposite of that.

The sneer turned into a deep scowl, and Mephy let out a silent sigh of relief when the other turned away from him and faced Sonic. Crises averted.

"How does that damn thing work?"

Sonic gave him a smile. "See? Was that so-"

"Shut up," his mirror image barked, "Tell me before I change my mind!"

Sonic snorted. "Jeez. I keep forgetting how much of a joy you are to be around." Before the other him could blow a gasket, he explained, "It's simple. The closer we get, the louder and faster it beeps. Pretty much it."

Mephiles stepped up and gestured, **"It hasn't beeped ever since we got here."**

"Dammit," the hedgehog cursed.

Sonic scratched his head. "Okay other me, I know that you hate me and all, but since we seem to have a momentary truce…I think…can you translate? Don't like bein' in the dark here."

The azure speedster addressed gave a smirk. "He told me that you are an annoying asshole."

 _Should've expected that from him…_ _Even though him understanding sign language in the first place is kinda surprising,_ Sonic thought before smugly replying, "Takes one to know one."

There was an agitated growl. "Now you're actin' like a damn brat!"

A lopsided grin grew on Sonic's muzzle. "Looks like the shoe's on the other foot now, huh pal?"

Mephiles sighed, worrying if he would have to step in between the two again. However, before he actually did so, the tracker in Sonic's hand began to beep softly.

The argument ended then and there. Sonic gasped excitedly and started to look all over the place, wondering where the Rogues would show up. The beeping was getting louder.

Mephiles was searching the area as well. The out-of-the-loop Sonic looked at both of them strangely until he focused on the striped 'hog, "What the hell are you looking for?"

Mephy answered, **"Those birds we ran into that took your shoes. They have an emerald."**

He scowled. "Are you kiddin' me? Those stupid-"

"There they go!" Sonic interrupted him, pointing upwards just as the birds came into view. They were in the air above them, flying off the side of a skyscraper on their Extreme Gear.

The trio watched as the birds did tricks and flips in the air as they dropped, and Sonic predicted where they were going to land so he could stop them. The hero grinned when the tracker beeped even louder. He zipped over to intercept the winged Mobians, and did just that. The Rogues saw him immediately upon landing, and Jet slid to a halt in front of him with a prominent scowl on his beak.

The hawk looked him over, and Sonic furrowed his brow at the underlying hesitation hidden beneath that hostile exterior. It didn't help that Wave and Storm both had the same exact disposition.

"What in the heck do you want?" Jet snapped.

Sonic held his hands up innocently. "What? I can't just drop by to say hi?"

Wave scoffed, keeping her balance on her board. "The last time you dropped by to say _hi_ , you almost killed Jet."

Jet whirled on her. "Hey, I told you that I could've fought back!"

"I believed you boss!"

The swallow rolled her eyes but said nothing more.

Jet opened his mouth again; however, before he could say anything, a confused Sonic cut him off. "I tried to kill you?" he asked, "Look, I know that some of our races have been rough but-"

"Are you freaking mental?!" The hawk angrily yelled, "You have to be! Any sane person would remember almost _slitting_ my throat!"

A ghost of a smirk appeared on Wave's face. "So you admit it."

She was completely ignored by the leader.

Sonic was moderately concerned now. "Slitting your…" Then it clicked. The hedgehog peered past the trio to Mephy and his twin standing off to the side, the former looking slightly nervous, and the latter highly agitated.

Sonic inwardly sighed. His double must've been here too. The speedster gave the other azure hedgie a pointed look before jogging back over to the duo.

The hero expected the wide eyes when the Rogues saw the other him. "Yeah…that wasn't me."

Storm scratched his head. "I'm so confused…"

"And why are there two of you?" Wave asked, baffled eyes flicking back and forth.

"Well…" Sonic stalled for a bit, wondering if explaining the situation to them was worth it. Honestly, it wasn't. "He's my twin brother!"

The doppelganger stared at him incredulously before glowering. "The hell I'm n-"

"He's been livin' under a rock for a while." Sonic continued as if the other hadn't spoken, and he really wished that his twin would play along. No fight had broken out yet, so that's great. The gears in his mind turning, Sonic placed a hand on his 'brother's' shoulder and immediately felt it tense. "Boom's always had a little temper on 'im."

"Don't touch me," was snarled, and Sonic's hand was suddenly empty.

Sonic just shrugged, believing that the other simply sidestepping and not lashing out was a good sign of compliance. "Siblings, am I right?"

Jet huffed, crossing his arms and glaring at Boom. "Just keep him under control. A crazy like him should be kept on a leash or something."

Then in a blink, the hawk was thrown off his board to the ground with a foot pushing all of the air out of his lungs.

Boom growled down at him, emerald orbs aflame. "Try me _one more time_ asshole and I'll-"

He didn't get to finish because both Sonic and Mephiles harshly pulled him off the hawk. A deep frown was etched into Sonic's features. In the corner of his eye, he saw Wave and Storm helping Jet up. "Do you always have to do that? You really need to control yourself pal!"

"I'll control myself after that bird learns his lesson!" Boom heatedly retorted.

 _Sonic made a good call on the other's nickname,_ Mephiles thought, hoping that this argument wouldn't go too far, _He's always a lit fuse._

Mephy's wish came true when Jet's voice separated the two speedsters. The hawk was back on his gear, looking severely annoyed. " _Thanks_ for introducing us to your lunatic of a brother, slowpoke, but we're going to-"

"Oh no you don't!" Sonic zipped into the green bird's path to keep him from leaving. "The reason I stopped you in the first place is because you have something we want!" He put both hands on his hips, grinning. "And I think you know just what it is."

Jet narrowed his eyes at him before those azures drifted over to Storm, who was holding a certain something behind his back. He refocused on the speedster in front of him, lips twitching downwards. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"The hell you don't!" Boom stomped his way back over and got into the hawk's face, baring his teeth. "Give me that damned Chaos emerald!"

Wave hovered next to the group's leader, gaze wary but confident. "And if we don't?"

Boom grabbed a fistful of feathers and held up a fist ready to swing. He ignored Jet's surprised squawk. "Then this little shit'll be visiting the hospital _real_ soon."

Wave visibly wavered a bit before shifting her attention over to Sonic. "Aren't you going to do something? You're just going to let him beat Jet up?"

Sonic rubbed his nose, surveying the situation. He thought for a moment and went up to Boom, nudging the hedgie. At the glare he received, he spoke, "Violence isn't always the only option y'know. How about an EG race?" He turned his gaze to the Rogues. "Winner gets the emerald, how 'bout that?"

"A race is way better than you hurting boss! And maybe me in the process…" Storm added under his breath before smirking. "Plus, that way we know that we get to keep it!"

Sonic just scoffed. "If you say so."

Wave flipped her feathers over her shoulder. "I'm down for a race. A win is a great way to end the day."

"Yes, yes! Fine! Just let me go!" Jet shouted, squirming in the tight grip.

Boom made it tighter, gritting his teeth. "I'm _not_ racing them! Especially on those dumb things! We can just take it now!"

"And what's the fun in just takin' it?" Sonic asked, wondering how he could get the other to agree. "There's nothing better than getting to gloat after a win! And plus you did threaten them earlier…don't you want to make up for that?"

"I don't give a crap about making _amends_ ," Boom retorted before roughly shoving the bird away. He crossed his arms. "But if I go for the emerald now, you and Mephiles would try to stop me and piss me off even more."

"I'm taking that as a yes!" Sonic chirped, focusing on a recovering Jet. "Pick a track!"

"And I thought that dealing with one of you was irritating enough!" The hawk complained and then answered, "Botanical Kingdom. Be there in fifteen minutes, or you're outta luck! Let's go Rogues!"

"Don't we need our other boards though boss?" Storm questioned, making Jet pause.

"Fine, we'll go _after_ we switch these out." With that, the Rogues quickly rode away in a blast of air, emerald still in their grasp.

The trio of hedgies watched them go. "They better not skip out on us," Boom growled under his breath.

Sonic waved him off. "Nah… They wouldn't do that. Now let's go win us a Chaos emerald!" Sonic then blinked, noticing their lack of gear. In hindsight, he should have brought his own. He did have a suspicion that they would run into the Rogues. "…After I pick up some gear. They'll probably let me rent for free. You kids be good until I get back!"

A gust of wind signified Sonic's departure, and Mephiles fiddled his fingers, upset that he didn't hop into the hero's shadow in time. The shadow hedgie peered over at the other blue speed demon who was scowling in the direction Sonic went.

"I hate him so much," Boom said lowly. Mephiles didn't know if he was being addressed, or it the azure one was talking to himself; he pretended not to hear. Then there was a soft scoff. "And Boom? Really? What kind of ass name is that?"

Mephy's lips curved up as he secretly observed the other. The hedgehog hadn't tried to actually beat him up yet. Yeah, Sonic wasn't here to break up any potential altercations, but maybe…

The striped 'hog turned to the speedster and moved his hands. **"Actually, that name suits you. You both can cause sonic booms, and well…"**

Boom narrowed his eyes at him. "It does _not_ suit me!"

Mephiles' ears lowered, but the hint of a smile didn't disappear. **"Yes it does."**

"No it doesn't!"

" **Yes it does."**

"No it doesn't!"

" **Yes it-"**

"NO IT-" Boom snapped his mouth shut, looking angry and…a bit surprised? But only for a split second though. "I'm not playing these games with you!"

Mephiles took a step back and held his hands up as a cease-fire, trying to not get punched in the face.

Boom huffed and crossed his arms. He eyed Mephy, scrunching his nose. Mephiles tilted his head at him before looking away, feeling slightly uncomfortable under the stare, and focusing on a bench a few steps away. He went to go sit in it, but a voice stopped him in his tracks.

"You weren't lying."

Mephiles rose a curious and confused brow when he turned his head back to look at the bluer one.

Boom looked tense and highly uncomfortable, trying and failing to hide that with a glare he was giving a random trash can. "Earlier at the hospital. You weren't lying about…what you said."

Facing the other now, Mephiles was nearly gaping. Was…Was he trying to apologize?

Boom's jaw was locked, and he was stock-still. Well, that was until he cursed under his breath and locked onto Mephy with his heated gaze. "That stupid name does _not_ fit me."

Mephiles blinked before inwardly smiling, not risking having it actually show on his face. He signed, **"Yes it does."**

Believe it or not, progress was being made.

* * *

"Okay so! I don't know you guys' histories with this type of EG, but Imma give you the run down."

Boom slowed his sprint down to a walk, and then finally decreased his speed to a stop when Sonic did the same, a distinct frown showing how much he was looking forward to his race sharply contrasting Sonic's radiant smile. Boom ignored Mephiles fully stepping out of Sonic's shadow and pretended that he didn't feel a certain way about it.

Hardened emerald orbs took in the unfamiliar jungle and the towering plants surrounding them, their owner adjusting the anti-gravity board in his grip. Then those green irises zeroed in on the bird trio in the distance who seemed to be huddled together on the natural wooden walkway, not acknowledging the mammals' appearance yet.

Boom withheld a guttural growl at the sight of them, not knowing which versions of the birds he hated the most. They all pissed him off. While the other Jet grated on his nerves every time he had unintentionally bumped into the rat with wings, this hawk made the azure hedgehog want to punch his little face in.

The unhappy Mobian glanced at Sonic when the hero began explaining. He did want to lunge at that hawk, but not as much as he wanted to punch his _nice_ double in his stupid mouth. It was _his_ fault that they didn't have the emerald, that they were about to race on these slow-ass boards – that he had _little_ experience riding – and that he was getting a damn headache.

"These zero gravity gear are a bit harder to ride than the air ones, but it's still pretty easy." Sonic threw his gear on the ground and hopped onto it when it began to levitate. It took everything within Boom to not throw his own board into the other's face. The hovering hedgehog continued to talk (Boom had never thought that he'd hate his own voice…until now), "After a little meteor incident-" Mephiles rose a brow at that, Sonic chuckled at the striped one, and Boom swore that he was going to get Stripes back for this. "Long story short, a meteor basically let us ride upside down and do cool tricks for a bit. Now, because my lil bro's awesome talent and imagination, he-"

"Who fucking cares?" Boom rudely interrupted, more than ready to get this over with so he could get his emerald. Anything he didn't know, he could easily find it out. "It's nothing more than a glorified snow board." He threw his gear on the ground and jumped on it when it hovered. And no, he did _not_ almost fall off. Boom rode in a tight circle before getting down. "You're actin' like it's rocket science. Let's just get _on_ with it."

He didn't expect the tightlipped grin sent his way. "You're actually right! It's kinda like a snow board." Sonic turned toward Mephiles, disregarding Boom now. "You probably have never ridden these before, so what about a snow board?" A head shake. "Skate board?" Another head shake. Sonic gave Mephy a comforting smile. "It'll be easy enough, don't worry about it bud. Go slower if you have to. It's not about winning; it's about having-"

"If you finish that with _fun_ , I swear to _Chaos,_ " Boom snarled, glaring, "This is _all_ about winning! If we _lose_ , we don't get the-"

"Only one person has to win." Sonic cut him off, and Boom could see the mischievous glint in those green eyes. The smug smirk paired with it made metaphorical steam pour out of Boom's ears.

He took a couple steps forward before Mephiles got in the middle of them. He didn't care. "And what does _that_ supposed to mean?"

"I'm just tellin' ya pal," Sonic simply replied before grounding himself and jogging over to the Rogues.

Boom imagined kicking him where it hurt the most, and it made him feel better.

There was a soft tap at his side, and the hedgehog saw Mephiles bob his head toward the starting line. **"Work together, remember? We are on the same team."**

"Piss off," Boom spat, following in Sonic's footsteps and meeting up with the birds; Mephiles was trailing cautiously behind him.

The Babylon Rogues had spread themselves out at the starting line, looking at the rodents smugly as they approached.

"Took you losers long enough," Jet jeered.

Sonic got in line beside him, taking the taunt in stride. "Hey, I'll make sure to use that when we're waitin' for you guys at the finish line!"

Boom remained silent as he stood between Wave and Storm, glowering at the both of them. The albatross seemed a bit unnerved and looked away – Boom inwardly snickered – but the swallow just scoffed. "You're going to need to do more than just _glare_ if you plan on not eating my dust."

The blue hedgie flicked her off, not bothering to waste anymore breath on the stupid birds.

"That's not nice!" Storm bellowed from his other side, feathers ruffling up, making him seem larger than he already was. "Apologize to her, now!"

Boom's glare was pure venom.

The albatross hesitated before saying, "Just wait until the race starts! You'll regret it!" Storm then turned to a nervous Mephiles who was situated on the other side of him, and Boom's gaze unconsciously sharpened. "Looks like you found your way out of Splash Canyon! Did you enjoy your stay?" Storm asked with a mocking laugh.

However, before the massive bird could say or do anything else, Jet's voice rung out. "Everyone ready? One lap!" The hawk pressed a button on a panel sticking out of the wooden ground. A voice started to count down from five.

"Just one?" Sonic asked.

"Scared, slowpoke?" Jet retorted.

Boom blocked out their taunts and just listened to the overhead voice. When it said 'start', he clenched his teeth and threw his gear to the ground, wasting no time in jumping on it. Again, he wobbled, but he quickly straightened out and leaned his weight forward, feeling the wind whip through his quills. Trees and thick vines were blurring, but, as he glanced to his right, Sonic, Wave, and Jet were still as clear as day.

And were pulling ahead of him.

Quickly.

"The hell?" Boom looked over their stances before glancing down at his own body, seeing nothing different. How were they going faster than him then? His gear had to be broken or something! Determined not to lose, he leaned forward more on his gear, and then gasped in surprise when something roughly shoved him from behind.

He shouted when he immediately lost his balance and crashed into the ground, scraping his face along the hardened surface. Boom groaned when he slid to a stop, peeling his scratched up muzzle from the wood below.

The hedgehog looked up just in time to see Storm giving him a jeering wave and saying, "Did you have a nice trip? I'll see you next fall!" before the albatross disappeared as he went down a sharp drop, following the others who had already went on. His accident was apparently unseen by them.

Boom snarled, seeing red. He pounded the ground with his fist. " _Fuck_ this race! After I beat that bird's ass, I'm gonna take that emerald mysel – gah!" The speedster whirled his head around when he felt his foot being yanked. Mephiles was off his board, tugging at his shoe. Boom was too baffled to understand what was happening. "What the?" Well, until it was too late. Mephiles pulled off his shoe and got back on his gear, looking somewhat terrified.

He was right to be.

Boom hopped back up, trembling in rage. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Give me back my damn shoe!" When the striped hedgehog shook his head, Boom threw himself at him only to miss when Mephiles suddenly moved out of the way. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to run like he wanted to without his shoe, he felt a bit of desperation sink in, especially when the shadow 'hog steadily increased the distance between them two. His heart skipped a beat when Mephiles waved the shoe at him before following the path the others had taken, now out of the speedster's line of sight.

 _That little…!_ Boom inwardly cursed before going over and reactivating his gear. He climbed up on it and leaned as far as he would dare, swiftly picking up speed. He adjusted his stance when he was suddenly flying downhill, but then he wobbled dangerously at the boosters that he didn't see until it was too late. He fought to keep his balance – despising the thought of wiping out again – as he raced downwards, narrowing his eyes at Mephiles who had reached the second set of boosters a distance ahead, speeding up and…going _upside down?_

Boom was no stranger of loop de loops, but usually he did it under his _own_ power, not some dumb vehicle's. If he died, he was going to kill both Mephiles and Sonic. And no, he _didn't_ care about if that statement didn't make sense.

The hedgehog watched as Mephiles – who was waving his arms crazily to keep on the board – looped safely around. Pushing any doubts down, Boom pushed forward and reveled in the increase of speed when he rode over those assists. He held his breath as he practically shot like a jet through the loop de loop, letting out a puff of air when he got through it.

Boom then saw a large ramp coming up, and he couldn't hold back the smirk thinking how terrified Mephiles must've been when he jumped it. The speedster crouched a bit on his gear as he climbed the incline. At the right moment, Boom propelled himself high into the air and preformed a backflip. He soon realized that doing so was a mistake, seeing that he was jumping over multiple waterfalls.

Heartrate skyrocketing, Boom lost his concentration as he fell back down, bouncing and rolling against an electronic road within a small tunnel covered in clear glass. He groaned as he sat back up, rubbing his side that he felt already bruising.

"This effing sucks," He panted to himself before gazing ahead. Emerald orbs widened when they zeroed in on Mephiles laid out on the ground in the distance, his shoe thrown to the side. When the striped one began to move, Boom scrambled up and grabbed his board. On it, the azure hedgie inwardly grinned as he gunned for his precious footwear. _This is my chance!_

That feeling of victory then waned when Mephiles – after seeing him coming – melted into a shadow to hurriedly grab the shoe and continue the 'race' on his gear. Boom's gaze hardened as he gave chase, putting all that he could into going faster.

He was slowly gaining, but then he had to cock his head when Mephiles seemed to move in slow motion after sharply tilting his gear to make a hard right. _What the what?_ Boom intelligently questioned before taking advantage of the situation. If the striped one was practically frozen in space, then swiping his shoe back would be a piece of cake.

Going as fast as he could, Boom approached the still Mephiles with his arm outstretched, ready to grab. His fingers barely brushed the fabric of his shoe before his target shot forward impossibly fast, hardly a blur as he zipped away.

Boom could only blink when he suddenly was reaching for nothing, and just now noticing that he was headed for a wall. The only thing he could do was brace for impact, but none came. Instead, he was airborne. Apparently, that wall was slanted _just enough_ for him to use it as a ramp.

Thanking Chaos and cursing Mephiles, Boom landed on the now wooded track hard, trying not to fall even though he was severely tilted as he rode and thinking – in the _very_ back of his mind – that these gravity boards weren't half bad.

Boom kept in eye on Mephiles on the more artificial part of the course as he hovered over the curving wood. The striped 'hog glanced back at where he thought Boom was supposed to be, and said speedster smirked at the confused expression on his face. He wouldn't know what hit him.

The blue hedgie went through three sections of boost pads, grin widening when he got closer and closer to Mephiles. At the last increase of speed, there was a small ramp, and Boom used it to almost land on top of his current opponent. The shocked look on the other's face was priceless as he, once again, reached for his shoe.

The surprised expression morphed into a determined one – Boom could still see the nervousness though beneath it all – as Mephiles held the footwear just out of the speedster's reach. Boom was more than ready to tackle the other, but Mephiles veered right just as a natural divider came between them, the wooden railings making it so that Boom would have to either turn all the way around to give chase, or just hope that the two tracks would come back together at some point.

Boom scowled as his gravity gear allowed him to ride vertical, dodging some leaves as they fell near his face. When the track began to curve, the hedgehog glanced up to see Mephiles above – or beside, a course like this made it hard to tell – him on the half of track that separated, and he glowered harder when he met those wary green irises.

After boosting a couple of times and going in a slow road-guided spiral, the two halves became a whole, and Boom sneered at Mephiles who was riding not three meters ahead of him. "Just give it up! You aren't gonna win this!" Mephiles just turned to look back at him and sped up in panic once he realized how close Boom really was.

The blue Mobian gnashed his teeth, refusing to be left in the dust, and attempted to catch up to the other before the next jump came up. He couldn't do it. Once in the air, Boom preformed some simple tricks on the gear high in the sky before coming down and riding out the boost. But then he noticed something.

He didn't see Mephiles anymore.

 _It's a straight track now! Where the hell did he…?_ Boom's thoughts trailed off when he looked behind himself, seeing Mephiles riding back there with a small smile on his face…that promptly disappeared when he was spotted.

"Nice try asshole!" Boom yelled out before doing a one-eighty and gunning it right for the striped hedgehog. He expected the other to give in there, to try to move to the side (which he was ready to counter), or even try to move backwards as well. What he _didn't_ expect was Mephiles to jump clear over him.

The azure rodent couldn't help but gape when Mephiles landed, gave him a tiny smirk, and rode on. Boom growled before spinning around and chasing after the other like his life depended on it. He would _not_ get humiliated like that without some payback!

Boom narrowed his eyes against the wind as he pushed forward, hitting a boost pad and riding into another loop de loop. His target was in his sights and getting steadily closer. They were basically on a straightaway now. Boom disregarded the lush scenery around him, focused only on the shitty thief he was after.

Mephiles having less experience was a huge plus; if that hedgehog wasn't the slightest bit slower than Boom was, the azure hedgie wouldn't have a chance. But as it was though, Boom's shoe would be back in his possession in five…four…three…two…

Then they had hit a sharp corner. Mephiles, who had been ready for it, used that slow motion move again to clear the turn like a professional. However, Boom, who had tunnel vision, almost flew right off the track and into whatever was below. Having a mini heart attack, Boom copied Mephiles at the last millisecond and leaned a hard left. Suddenly, everything was moving at a snail's pace.

The hedgehog's pulse was in his ears as he took in his surroundings, slowly but surely turning into the direction he wanted to go in. It felt _so_ strange. Sounds were muffled and the colors seemed to be muted. Just what the hell…

However, it was over as soon as it started, and Boom took off like a bat straight out of hell, tearing up the ground as he went. He couldn't help to love the adrenaline pumping through his veins because of that little maneuver.

Okay, _fine._ He _might_ have to invest in one of these later on. After he got his shoe back.

Mephiles looked back at him with an odd look on his face. The wariness was still there, but now relief was mixed in like he was glad that Boom hadn't went over. Boom was happy too. If he had fallen, Mephiles wouldn't have gotten what was coming for him.

There was another jump coming up, and the striped Mobian hit it before Boom got to (to his irritation). The speedster flipped a few times before landing inside what seemed like a massive beehive with a man-made road in the middle of it.

Boom hit a boost and then his board began to shake. He ignored the feeling for a couple of seconds, but when it became more violent, he peered down in confusion, hoping that his gear wasn't about to blow up or something like that. There was a flashing light at the tip of his board, and, curious, he pressed it with his foot.

Boom shouted out in surprise when he came to a stop, when his gear shut down, and when he floated into the air _despite_ his board 'not working'. The hedgehog held onto it – not sure _what_ the hell was going on – and was shocked to feel it still vibrating. Then his vision got so bright that it almost hurt. Before he could question _anything_ however, his body was thrusted forward with speed he didn't know existed without the power of his own legs.

He didn't know what or how, but (after getting over the initial shock) he smirked when he realized that he was gaining on Mephiles like never before. With one arm holding onto the board, the other reached out just as he tackled the striped Mobian from behind, sending them both forward in a heap of limbs.

Their gear thrown/knocked to the side, the two hedgies somewhat painfully rolled and bounced until they came to a complete stop with Boom on top. He sneered down at a dazed Mephiles before tearing his shoe from the other's limp grip, growling out, "Shoulda givin' up a long time ago!" He then dropped the shoe beside him and gripped a handful of white fur, pulling the shadow 'hog's upper-half uncomfortably up. Boom reared back a fist, and he scoffed at Mephiles' silent pleading. "It's too late to apologize now, jackass."

"Whoa whoa hey!" Boom's frown grew at the sound of his own voice. He glanced up to see Sonic strolling towards them, his own EG tucked under his arm. Heated emerald orbs just now noticed that they were situated right on the finish line. "I was gettin' a bit worried about you guys, but I guess that was for nothin'!" Mephiles took this time to melt into the ground and reappear at Sonic's side, wiping sweat off his brow. Sonic glanced at the striped one before cocking his head at his double. "What the heck happened?"

Boom – thinking that he'd get Mephiles back later – slipped on his shoe and crossed his arms. "That albatross is what effing happened. And then this _idiot_ here decided to take my damn shoe."

Sonic pursed his lips. "Okay, with the shoe thing, I can _kinda_ understand why you tackled him." Mephiles silently gasped, and Boom's lips twitched. That had to be the first thing they had ever agreed with. "But what happened with Storm?"

"All you need to know is that I need to punch his face in," Boom snapped, searching the area and finding it empty besides the trio of mammals. His green orbs narrowed when they saw Mephiles' relieved expression. _That sneaky little…that's why he took my shoe!_ "Where the hell did they go?"

"Oh, they left," Sonic responded with a grin as he reached into his quills. Boom's breath hitched when a viridescent glow filled the area. "They didn't take their loss very well."

Ignoring Mephiles' excited claps, Boom breathed out, "A Chaos emerald!" The speedster rushed his twin after he said it, hands out to grab. "It's mine! I came out here first to find it dammit!"

Sonic sidestepped him and tucked the gem right back where he got it from. "Finders keepers!" He and Mephiles then shared a look that Boom did not appreciate, _especially_ because of that mischievous smile on his twin's muzzle. Sonic zipped over and placed his EG on a pile that Boom's and Mephiles' had accidentally already made. "Someone'll run across those and return 'em!" He turned to the agitated hedgie. "How 'bout this? We know where another emerald is! When we find that, we can give you o-"

"Oh _hell_ no," Boom cut him off, teeth bared. "That one is _mine_ , and I will take it from you if you don't give it to me!"

There was a silent stare down between the two azure twins for a moment, one gaze calmer than the other, both not backing down. Not one word was uttered until Sonic's grin grew. "So you wanna play a game of keep-away huh?" Sonic shifted his weight, and Mephiles immediately hopped into his shadow. "Fine by me! See if you can keep up!"

He sped away, and Boom snarled before departing in a gust of wind, right on his trail. "You son of a bitch! Get back here!"

"Aw, don't talk about our mom that way!"

Stripes better watch out when Boom returned to Station Square, because he felt like giving out some payback.

* * *

It was impossible.

Boom _hated_ to admit that, but there was _no_ way that he could catch his annoying doppelganger. Every time Boom had him in his grasp, Sonic would just laugh and hop away, taunting him with his closeness.

They trio had been on the move for a while; the sun was hanging dangerously low in the sky. Boom had no idea where Sonic was leading them, but he didn't give a shit. He wanted the emerald that was _always_ out of his reach.

It wasn't that he was slower than his twin, it was just the tiny head-start Sonic had on him made all the difference. And he could just imagine Mephiles snickering in his little hiding place, enjoying this embarrassing show.

Boom avoided a lone tree when Sonic did so, hearing his own feet thud against the grassy ground as they worked. The hedgehogs had been out of that jungle for a while now, and they were in some hilly plain where it was visible for miles in any direction.

They were running along some train tracks. Sonic was enjoying the whole experience while Boom just wanted to end it. _I mean hell…if there was another emerald somewhere else, why can't he just give me the one he has and go get the other one? What's the point of dragging me with them?_ Boom didn't have an answer to that, so he blocked those thoughts out and focused on the chase.

"Getting tired, other me?" Sonic teased, looking over his shoulder with that same grating grin on his face.

"Tired of seeing your ugly ass face!" Boom barked, fingers clenching at his side.

Sonic chuckled. "I guess that you hate lookin' in mirrors then!"

"You have _no idea_ how much I hate you."

"You make it too easy pal!"

Boom's next words were drowned out when a loud train horn echoed throughout the area. The hedgehog glanced around the speedster he was chasing to see a passenger train coming their way on the tracks. Sonic veered away from said metallic rails, in turn making Boom do so as well. The irate speed demon didn't think any more about the locomotive, but that soon changed when a telltale beeping sounded from Sonic's cuff.

"Wha…?" Sonic said, switching gazes from his glove to the incoming train. "It's on there? But Tails said…huh…"

Then, before Boom could blink, the other hedgehog had jumped on top of the moving train as it passed. He wanted to scream. _You stupid damn...ass…mothereffing...ugh!_ Boom dug his heels into the ground before hopping on the train as well, landing softly on the roof of the locomotive. There was a train car separating him and Sonic.

He was about to continue their little 'game', but then Sonic just sent him a hard to read smile before settling down at the edge of the roof, leaning back on his hands and dangling his legs. Boom blinked for a second before shaking his head. There were no time-outs; he was getting his emerald.

The azure Mobian crossed two sections and made it to the same car Sonic was on. Said hedgehog hadn't given him another glance. His eyes were closed as he enjoyed the ride.

Boom didn't want to say that he hesitated, but he did before believing that this was the perfect time for an ambush. That was until Mephiles manifested himself in front of him, both cautious and sure at the same time.

"Get out the way before I smack you off this train," Boom threatened.

Mephiles took a half step back, but he was still in the way. **"Do you really want to fight now? There are people on this train!"**

"And?" Boom bit, "I don't care-"

" **You'd care if your fighting somehow derailed the train, right?"** Boom tried to not let his reluctance show, but it must've because Mephiles kept going. **"You'll get your emerald eventually. It's apparently on here…"** The striped hedgehog silently sighed. **"Everything doesn't have to be a fight."**

The speedster glared and hissed out, "I better get an emerald when this train stops." He then went to the opposite side of the car and sat down with his legs crossed, elbows on his knees; his chin was propped up on a palm as he gazed at how the setting sun's rays blanketed the landscape. He kept his mind blank because if he didn't, he would launch himself at his twin and start something that could end horribly.

A blue ear twitched when Mephiles sat down on the same side he was on, enough of a distance away. Hard emerald orbs flickered over to him before their owner scoffed and pointedly focused in a direction the striped hedgehog wasn't.

When Boom saw the outline of a city with bright lights in the distance, the sun had set; the moon and stars had revealed themselves, shining down on the trio of hedgehogs and the population of people in the moving train.

As they got closer, he could make out the high-rise buildings and the just as high roads that led in every direction, cars speeding across them. Boom's lips twitched downward at the sight, racking his brain. He couldn't name the city, but that really wasn't saying much since he didn't really travel all that often. He _used_ to not to, anyway.

"Grand Metropolis!" Boom turned his head to see Sonic stand up, staring at the city with clear recognition in his eyes. "Haven't been here in a while! It's nice to see it not taken over by bots again!"

Boom tilted his head. "That fatass has taken over this city before?" This world's Eggman had a farther reach than his.

Sonic nodded. "Yeah! Wait…" he turned to Boom, brow furrowed. "He never took over your version of the city?"

"No," the twin scoffed, "The lard always targeted Station Square."

"So _you've_ never been here before?" Boom just gave him a pointed look. He soon learned that he'd made a mistake because Sonic's eyes lit up. "You're overdue for a tour!"

"As if." Boom stood up and scowled. "The only reason I'm here is for a Chaos emerald, not a stupid tour!"

Sonic rolled his eyes and put a hand on his hip. "You're missin' out pal! It's a sight to see!" The hero glanced over to Mephiles, who was getting to his feet as well. "You won't mind a tour, right? We've got plenty of time to get back, since I know now that the emerald's on board." Unsurprisingly, the striped one was all for it.

Boom's frown grew as he looked away from them, focusing on the incoming train station. When the locomotive fully stopped, the trio hopped down by the sliding doors of the train. Boom stood back as Sonic became a single-person welcoming committee, waving at every person who exited the cars. Mephiles was in between the two speedsters, politely smiling when any gazes drifted towards him.

The whispers weren't hard to hear. Boom wasn't exactly hidden, so he got his fair share of glances as well. He looked at the sky to avoid those questioning orbs, thinking that the whole world would know about him come tomorrow.

His ears flickered when the beeping coming from Sonic got louder, and he trained his emerald irises on his twin as well at the exit doors. Whoever had the gem was about to come out. They didn't have to wait long before an elderly man stepped into the open with eyebrows that had Boom questioning who had the most facial hair: him or the doctor.

"Professor Pickle!" Sonic greeted with a sunny smile and friendly wave. "Long time no see!"

 _Pickle?_ Boom thought, _I've heard that name before…maybe…_

"Ah, Sonic my boy!" The old man stepped closer to the hero, expression bright. "How is life treating you?"

Sonic flipped a hand. "Same old, same old! Runnin', dukin' it out with Eggman, the fun stuff."

"Well that's good to hear!" Pickle then turned his attention to Mephiles, which got Boom in his line of sight. His thick brows rose in surprise. "Oh?"

The hero scratched his nose. "Heh, let me introduce you to my guys here!" He gestured to the shy striped hedgie. "This is my friend, Mephy!" Sonic then threw a thumb over his shoulder. "And the hedgehog back there is my brother, Boom!" He put a hand up to his mouth, even though his next words were still loud and clear. "He's a bit antisocial, but a nice guy deep down. Really deep."

Boom gritted his teeth, but didn't react otherwise.

"Oh that's quite alright! Everyone has their own unique personalities!" Pickle chuckled.

"It's unique alright…" Sonic muttered, and his double wondered if the other _wanted_ a fight. "Anyway! I stopped you because we're lookin' for a Chaos emerald!" Sonic pointed to a large bag the professor was carrying. "Do you have one?"

"Sure do my boy!" Pickle unzipped his bag and pulled out a shining white jewel, its glow rivaling the moon's rays. The professor held it out for Sonic to take. "I was going to study the emerald here, but if you're asking for it, your needs supersede mine."

"Are you sure?" Sonic asked, taking it. "Wouldn't your trip here be for nothing then?"

"Don't you worry!" Pickle placated, "I have enough information on it to study here without the gem itself! You keep it!"

"Alright, thanks!" Sonic waved as the elderly man walked away. The hero then whirled around to face the other two 'hogs. He tossed the emerald once. "Well, guess our job here is done! Time for a mini vacation!"

"I don't know what the hell you're talkin' about, but what I _do_ know is that you're gonna give me that emerald!" Boom demanded as he stomped over, not in the mood for anymore funny business.

"Oh c'mon, you're still passin' up on that tour?" Sonic zipped away from him, grinning like a madman. "You _gotta_ see the HEXAeco building!"

"We are _not_ doing this again!" Boom yelled, outraged.

Sonic smirked. "Aren't we?" Mephiles jumped into the hero's shadow, and Boom cursed like a sailor. "The tour of Grand Metropolis is starting now! And I, Sonic the hedgehog, will be your amazing tour guide for today!" He winked. "Don't get lost now."

When his twin disappeared, Boom thought for a second. He could either give chase to his annoying double, listen to that grating voice, and endure being in the other's presence. Or he could just leave. He could get the emerald later after Stripes' plan was done. He would get a gem eventually.

Too bad he didn't _do_ eventually.

It was all about the right _now_.

And plus it would make his day to see the look on Sonic's face when he finally got caught.

Boom took off after his twin.

* * *

Eggman's mind was working overtime as he finished up Metal Sonic's torso, placing the blow torch to the side. Another dimension? One of the Sonic's – the doctor was it sure the one who had fought Omega earlier – was from another dimension? Eggman would've thought that it was a ludicrous idea if it wasn't for the fact that this had happened before, in a way. The doctor didn't know what to think of it. What was he going to do against _two_ annoying rodents when he could barely take care of one?

"Are you finished?"

Of course, he actually couldn't do _anything_ at the moment, reality slapping him hard in the face.

Hyperaware of the electric collar that was unfortunately around his neck, Eggman stood up and glared down at his mutinous robot who had the all-controlling remote in his metallic palm. "Yes, you should be fully functioning now, _Metal_."

"Should be?" Metal questioned, red opticals flashing. "If I malfunction in anyway doctor, it will be your death."

Eggman saw those metal fingers clench around the remote control, and he couldn't help the cold sweat that accumulated on his forehead. He could not believe that things turned out this way. And all because he let Metal bring that chameleon into his lab! He _knew_ that something was off, but he was foolish in letting the reptile stay. Now he was collared like some…like some _pet._ He was the one that was supposed to be in control here, not some subordinate!

Damn that chameleon. That traitorous, devious, scheming…

A lightbulb flashed on in Eggman's mind.

Espio was none of those things. None of that blue annoyance's friends were. But this chameleon...

The doctor focused on Metal. The robot was walking his way out of the repair room they were currently inside. Eggman had a theory he needed proven. "Espio is from another dimension as well." He said it more as a statement than a question.

Metal paused in his stride. He didn't say anything for a minute. "Yes," he eventually answered. "Yes he is."

Eggman pursed his lips. "And how do you know?"

"The pieces fit together, doctor." Metal glanced back at him. "With his behavior, and how others act around him, it was not hard to figure it out when given the biggest clue."

Eggman ignored the passive aggressive jabs thrown in his direction. "He came from another _world,_ and you let him do whatever he wants while I, your _creator,_ become nothing but a servant?"

"Correct." Metal replied, and the scientist blinked at that blunt answer. "I do not care where he comes from. With him, I have higher chances of achieving my goal. That is what matters. Do you not want me to complete the mission you assigned me to, doctor?"

The human's mustache flared. "I do! It's just that _I'm_ supposed to be the one…gah! This is complete mutiny!"

"Once you do not get what you want, you whine like a child. I should be used to it by now." When Metal turned away, Eggman made strangling motions with his hands. "Come with me. We are going to visit our prisoners."

Eggman did so; it wasn't like he had a choice if he valued his life. "Those prisoners…" He started, bringing up the mental picture of the psychic and then the male he _assumed_ to be Rouge's brother, but he could be a different being altogether. "When they broke into _my_ lab," He just felt the need to reiterate that, "they attacked Espio. They know him. They had to come from the same place the chameleon did."

"It is a possibility." Metal agreed. "That is why we are going to them. An interrogation is in order."

"Why are you making me come with you?" Eggman inwardly growled. That question should never have to come out of his mouth.

"So you can see the most effective way to handle captives."

Eggman rose a brow at that, but didn't question any further.

He should've questioned it. That way, he would've been able to at least brace himself for what he was about to see. But no, he didn't ask, and the sight he was witnessing had his stomach doing flips. Eggman was no stranger to pain and trauma; his job was practically to inflict that on a weekly basis. But this… He believed that he had never seen this much blood in one place before.

The hedgehog violently trembling in the corner didn't make anything better. Eggman had to look away from those slashes and bruises and splatters of congealing blood. The doctor focused on Metal, who was looking at the rodent like nothing was wrong. "What did you _do_ to him?"

"I did not do anything. Considering the damage, I am assuming that Penumbra had attacked him."

That made Eggman even more confused, still not paying attention at how their voices made the psychic cower even more. "Penumbra? But-"

"Have you forgotten about that chip you implanted, doctor?" Metal asked, and the human's eyes widened beneath his glasses. "Espio has the remote for him. He is as controlled as you are."

"Just keeping them here would have been _more_ than enough!" Eggman said through clenched teeth before he fell to his knees, crying out in agony as an electric current compromised his entire system. The pain was unbearable. Eggman never expected for his world to be flipped upside down like this.

The crippling static was then taken away, and a metallic finger forced Eggman to look up into those dispassionate red orbs. "You have shared your opinion. Do not do it again." Metal took a step toward the panel by the door. "Get up. We are going in."

Eggman used the wall to stand back up on shaky legs, cursing his situation. He took a wobbly step toward Metal as the bot made the sliding door open. A muffled scream came from the room when they entered, and Eggman just watched as Silver curled more into himself, making his bound body as small as possible in the corner he tucked himself in.

The copper odor was overbearing when the door closed itself. Eggman fought hard not to gag as he stood in one of the few spots on the floor that wasn't painted red.

Metal walked over to the hedgehog, not caring about the blood whatsoever, and the doctor wondered when exactly his lab had transformed into an unbelievably gruesome set for a horror film. Eggman's body tensed up when the shouts became more terrified and desperate with every step Metal took.

When the robot grabbed an arm – regardless of the injured state it was currently in – a blood-curdling scream filled the room. The fear, pain, and desperation in the rodent's voice made it so much worse to listen to.

Silver thrashed as Metal pulled him to his feet, clearly wanting to get away from whatever's touching him. Eggman saw that the psychic was blindfolded, and knew that this whole experience was worse for the trespasser because of it. Did the doctor feel bad for him? He didn't know. They _had_ broken into his lab, but then again, this was overkill. And that meant something, coming from him.

"Stop resisting." Metal ordered, but that only made Silver flail harder, reopening barely healed gashes. The robot punched the hedgehog in his cheek, which made the psychic pathetically whimper. He stopped thrashing however. Metal let the arm go before reaching up and yanking Silver's gag out of his mouth. "I am here to ask you some questions."

Silver's ears were flattened against his head as whines spilled out of his mouth. "P-Please…please…please…d-don't hurt me…please…"

Eggman crossed his arms and observed.

"What is Espio to you?" Metal asked, "Why did you attack him?"

The psychic's whole frame was shaking. "I-I don't…" He let out a strangled sob. "Please! Please d-don't hurt me…please…"

Eggman needed to leave. He needed to get this out of his head so he could think of a way to fix all of this. However, he knew if he attempted to move towards the door, Metal would have him on the floor the next second.

Metal changed his question. "Are you from another dimension?"

"A-Another dimension? I-I don't know what you're t-talking about!" Silver shouted, voice trembling. "Just…Just p-please don't…"

"How do you not know?" Metal repeated, voice louder.

"I-I-I don't!" Silver bit his lip so hard that blood dripped from it. "I-"

The robot punched the hedgehog right in the chest, causing the psychic to be hurled backwards, crashing on the tiled floor. The horrified scream turned into hard sobs as Silver cried on his side, curling back up. Nothing escaped his mouth but blabbering nonsense with the occasional wail that made Eggman want to put that gag back on him just so he wouldn't have to torment himself with those sounds.

"This was a waste of time," Metal commented, facing Eggman, "We are going to the bat. He should be able to answer."

Before Eggman could say the bot had no way of knowing that – especially if the flying Mobian had gotten the same treatment – the door slid open again. The doctor and mech turned in that direction and was greeted with the sight of Espio.

Eggman glared when that single amber iris zeroed in on him before it drifted to Metal. Espio folded his arms in front of him (Eggman had no doubt that he got Penumbra to heal him) and leaned against the doorframe. "What are you two doing in here?"

"Did you achieve what you went out to do?" Metal inquired, disregarding the question altogether.

Espio's muscles tensed. "Yes," he replied stiffly, "Now, what were you two doing?"

"I wanted to get some information about-"

"-this _dimension_ that you came from." Eggman cut the other off, getting angry in the reptile's presence. "That you aren't from this world!"

Espio sighed and focused on Metal. "So you found out…and you had to tell him?"

"I did not see the harm in it."

The chameleon rolled his eye. "Of course you didn't." Espio trained his gaze on the human. "This doesn't change anything."

"I know. Metal made sure that I knew that." Eggman muttered, hating the fact that he was practically worth no more than the hedgehog bleeding on the floor. He had to watch what he said, or he would be taken care of with a single push of a button.

Espio smirked. "Glad that's cleared up." He then pushed away from the doorframe, gesturing to someone outside of the room. "Penumbra, get in here." As soon as he uttered that name, Silver's cries got louder, projecting his pain and sorrow to everyone listening. It only seemed to affect half. Eggman's jaw was clenched, seeing an uncomfortable and _very_ bloody Penumbra enter the space. Those maroon irises swept across the room, not caring about Eggman and Metal, until they settled on Silver.

Penumbra crouched low to the floor, and he glanced up at Espio with pleading eyes. _If only it was that simple_ , Eggman thought.

Espio just snorted at the striped one's attempt. "Attack."

The doctor averted his gaze just before claws sunk into Silver's back. Those shrieks of agony were going to echo in his mind for a long while. He didn't know why this was affecting him so much. Technically, he didn't _know_ the ones getting hurt. Maybe it was because he wasn't causing the pain which usually was overshadowed by the prospects of victory. Maybe it was because the one causing it was controlled like he was. Maybe it was because Espio didn't seem to be wanting anything else but bloody revenge.

Eggman spoke over the ongoing horror. "Why don't you just kill them?" Honestly, that would be more forgiving than what was happening right now.

Espio's answer was simple.

"They're more useful alive, and they can't learn if they die."

Eggman couldn't help but wonder if that applied to him too.

* * *

 **A/N: The EG race was based off of gameplay in Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity just in case you guys were wondering.**

 **Next chapter…grab your shovels!**

 **Oh, and also…SONIC MANIA AND SONIC 2K17 HYPE!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer- I don't own any of the characters…which is really unfortunate…**

 **Chapter 25- DNA**

"So I'm assuming that you'll be fired from your job when you get back."

Rouge's ears twitched when a sleep-laced voice rose above the rumble of a jet engine. The albino agent abandoned her piloting duties for a split second to peer over her shoulder at the red Mobian sitting behind her. Red was leaning his head against the glass that separated them from the rushing winds. Those amethyst irises held muted interest as they focused on her, waiting for a response.

The bat grinned before waving him off and resuming steering the speeding craft through the air. "So Sleeping Beauty finally woke up, hm?"

There was a sigh from behind her. "I was resting my eyes. There's a difference."

"Sure there is sugar," Rouge teased as she stared forward, squinting against the setting sun. She then glanced down to her left, seeing Shadow skate against the sands under the sleek aircraft, keeping up with them with little difficulty. "But anyway, GUN would probably yell at me, but that'll be it. I'm too _precious_ for them to lose," she said cheekily.

"You stole one of their jets, and they won't fire you?"

Rouge's grin widened. "They can't let my many talents go to waste."

Nothing but a noncommittal hum came from the back.

Inside of the jet was quiet once more, and Rouge found it awkward (at least for her) knowing that the other sharing the same space wasn't asleep. She pursed her lips, thinking that not having constant conversation – or yelling contests, depending on the day – with a red echidna close by was something that she wasn't used to. Same color, same voice, same face, but definitely not the same personality.

"Not the conversationalist, are you?" She finally asked when the stretch of silence went on for too long.

"There's nothing to talk about."

Rouge had to resist rolling her eyes. How did Shadow deal with this version of Knuckles all this time? The answer quickly came to her however, knowing that the striped hedgehog preferred less conversation in general. Those two had to have gotten along well. "There's plenty hon!" She flashed him a mischievous smirk. "Like what's the _real_ reason you wanted to join Shadow and me?"

"…The real reason? I told you already."

The agent's face fell and she sent the blunt and oblivious echidna – maybe he and Knuckles had more in common than she thought – a slightly irritated look. "You can't be _that_ lazy, can you? There's surely another-"

She barely detected the exasperated sigh as she turned back forwards. "Rouge, you can have whatever relationship you want with my other self, I don't care. Just leave me out of it." Said bat blinked. Maybe he wasn't as oblivious as he seemed.

That attitude still wasn't welcome however, knowledgeable or not. "Excuse _me_ , Mr. Snappy," she quipped.

"I'm not being snappy," he drawled out. "It's called being _concerned_ and nowhere close to being in the mood for whatever you're doing."

Rouge glanced back at the red echidna to see him gazing out of the window, his brow subtly furrowed. The frown present was a little too prominent to blame on lethargy. The pilot chose this time to sober up a bit, mind going back to everything that's been revealed to the not-guardian. Not many of those things have been good, to put it lightly.

"I get it," she started, letting out a small puff of air, "Life isn't the best right now. Your home is practically destroyed and you're stuck here. Also, what makes it worse is that two of your friends have been kidnapped and are being held for ransom. You're worried." Teal orbs drifted to the back, meeting attentive violets. "You aren't the only one, hon. I haven't been around Cream much, but hell, even I know that she doesn't deserve what she's been going through. Sorry if my way of coping is getting on your nerves," she finished, slipping that last part in and wondering how the red Mobian would respond.

Red took his gaze off of her and refocused it to the golden landscape littered with patches of green they were flying over. He raked his hand through his dreads. "If you found a different way to 'cope', then maybe I wouldn't mind as much."

"Well, let's talk about something else then!" Rouge suggested, musing, _And keep the flirting to a minimum._ The bat tapped her chin while her other hand handled the steering. She snapped her fingers when a topic came to mind. "Tell me about Rogue. And please don't tell me that he's a taboo topic too."

"…What about him?" Red questioned, sounding defeated.

 _He didn't really put up any type of fight. He already knew how it was going to end._ She inwardly chuckled. _He's a smart one._ Rouge flipped her hand. "Anything really. Shadow had already told me the whole story, but he didn't go into the details."

"There's nothing much to say." Hearing movement, Rouge turned her head to see the echidna slump more in his seat, cheek buried in his gloved palm. He was still peering through the clear glass, this time watching Shadow move down below. "He's a nice guy."

The agent couldn't resist the eye roll this time. "Really? I didn't know."

He shrugged. "Sorry. I don't know what else to tell you."

Rouge clicked her tongue, his dispassionate tone rubbing her the wrong way. "Is he anything like me?"

"Sure," was his immediate reply.

"Sure?" Rouge repeated, lips twitching downwards. "What kind of answer is that?"

"An accurate one."

 _Well this conversation is doing nothing for me,_ Rouge mentally complained, hoping that her silence successfully conveyed her displeasure towards the one in the back. His lack of response told her that no, no it didn't.

However, Rouge's discontent melted away when what they had been searching for appeared over the horizon. It was a civilization made up of huts and large clay structures. It had to be Mazuri. "It's about time we got here! We need to hurry and get this emerald so we can get out of this heat and check out some slots!"

There was shuffling, and suddenly the bat had a tanned muzzle over her shoulder. Red was checking out the incoming town as well. "Why did we have to fly here anyway? Shadow could've just Chaos Controlled us here."

Rouge angled the jet downwards to slowly descend. "He hasn't exactly been here before, and neither have I. Shadow there likes control – which I'm sure you've learned by now – and teleporting into the unknown isn't really his cup of tea."

Red just grunted. "Then why did he volunteer to search Mazuri if he-"

The bat shrugged, pulling in for a landing right at the outskirts of the little village, gaining the attention of the local natives. "Because it was the farthest out, and despite appearances, he likes this kind of fast travel just as much as Blue does."

The echidna sat back just as they touched down. "Always has to make things difficult…"

 _I can't argue with you there, but that is what makes it interesting,_ Rouge thought as she opened up the large cockpit, glass retreating inside of the jet. Even though the sun was hanging low in the sky, the heat was almost enough to make Rouge want to stay in the air-conditioned aircraft. Almost. A beautiful jewel was waiting for her after all.

She turned off the jet and hopped out, landing gracefully on the rich golden soil beneath her. The bat stretched her wings before giving the onlookers a single wave. Red climbed out beside her and linked his hands behind his head, ignoring the people altogether as he calmly stared up at the orange clouds up above.

Rouge took her eyes off him when Shadow approached her with his arms crossed, scarlets surveying the nearby area. She put a hand on her hip and rose a brow. "Do you sense anything yet hon?"

Shadow nodded after a moment of thought. The striped hedgehog bobbed his head in the direction of the village. "I can feel the emerald's energy coming from that direction. It's weak, so it has to be somewhere beyond it."

"Just great," Red drawled out, "The emerald's not even here." The echidna focused on the huts of the village. "I can stay here and-"

"Don't start with that again." Shadow gave him a pointed look that had a tinge of exasperation mixed within. Rouge watched in amusement as Red visibly slumped in disappointment. Then she barely could hold in the snicker when the hedgehog gripped the echidna's wrist, to Red's surprise and irritation. "We're all going."

Red tugged at his arm a bit, letting out a heavy sigh. "Do we really have to go through with this?"

"You run slower than Rouge can fly," Shadow stated, getting ready to blast off. "We won't need the jet at the moment."

The agent grinned, looking at the duo. "Hm. I can't help but think that you two have done this before."

"Unfortunately," Red huffed, done fighting the hedgehog's strong grip. "This happened the first time he dragged me – literally – along for an 'adventure' after he ran into me – literally again – for a second time."

Shadow scoffed, gazing off into the distance. "If I hadn't, you wouldn't be here right now."

"Yeah. I would've been relaxing against a tree and catching up on sleep."

"In the _other_ reality." The striped Mobian finished for him, and the echidna had a confused expression on his face until it morphed into an understanding one.

"Oh…right."

Rouge just shook her head at the Ultimate Lifeform. "It's just like you to make everything dark, Shadow."

"Blame the color of my fur," the hedgehog quipped before shifting his weight. "There's no point in wasting anymore time. Let's go." He activated his skates and blew right through the middle of the village, giving the locals just enough time to hop out of the way before they were ran over.

The people glanced the way Shadow and Red left and then turned to Rouge for an explanation and/or apology. The agent cursed her partner's one-track mind before plastering a grin on her face. "I'm saying sorry for him, because I know he isn't going to do it later." She gestured to the jet. "Do you mind watching this _government owned_ aircraft that is easily tracked down if stolen?" Actually, Rouge had disabled the built-in tracker, but they didn't need to know that. At the head shakes she received, her grin grew cheeky. "You all are such kind people!"

With a powerful flap of her wings, the agent took off after her partner.

* * *

Shadow let go of the echidna's wrist when ruby irises trained themselves on the massive and intricate clay buildings laid out before them, some structures reaching high into the darkening sky. The emerald's pull was stronger here. They weren't too far away from it.

There was a breathy groan from beside him; Shadow glanced over to see Red rubbing the abused area on his arm. It looked like merely gazing upon the complex citadel caused the red Mobian physical pain. "The emerald's in _there_ somewhere?" Red met the hedgehog's gaze. "You better be accurate in searching, because I swear to Chaos…"

"And what are you going to do sugar?" Rouge asked from above them, admiring the view. "You look like you barely have enough energy to walk, much less threaten and actually go through with it."

"…You have a point there," Red muttered.

Shadow gave the echidna a once-over before grunting out, "After going through all that we have, you manage to still complain." The Ultimate Lifeform knew that these series of unfortunate events wouldn't completely change someone's personality, but he thought that the more-than-lethargic echidna would raise his energy level up a notch. However…Shadow could also see the stress of everything weighing down on the red Mobian, and motivation would reasonably be at an all-time low.

"You wouldn't have heard my complaints if you had left me at the village." Red yawned out.

"I don't know what's worse," Rouge started, "Knuckie's obsession with the Master Emerald, or your obsession with sleep."

Red furrowed his brow in thought. "Considering his rampage earlier, I think my dimensional twin has me beat. And speaking of him…" he rose a brow at Shadow. "Is he always that hotheaded? Because I really don't want him in my face every time we're near each other. It's draining."

"Of course it is," Shadow retorted sarcastically. _Everything's draining for you_ , "The guardian is only like that when Faker riles him up, or when he's on the topic of the Master Emerald."

"Which is unfortunate," Rouge chimed in, lowering herself to flutter in front of Red. "Because if he was anything like you, I would've had that green beauty to myself a long time ago." The bat sighed as she faced Shadow. "If only you had the chance to make Knuckles like this."

"Make Knuckles…" Red trailed off before inquisitive violets clashed with alert rubies. "Right…that dream stuff mentioned earlier. Can you explain that to me? Well, that and how _exactly_ are you walking around right now? If Espio hadn't been completely lying about your death, that is."

Shadow refused to relive that gruesome memory of his fight with the chameleon. Muscles tensed, the hedgehog marched forward into the citadel, skates clanking against the hardened clay. "The emerald is located in the west side of this place." He peered back at Red who was following behind with Rouge at his heels. "Are you going to be awake enough to keep up?"

"As long as you start explaining, maybe," the echidna replied, beginning to jog when the hedgehog quickened his pace.

The Ultimate Lifeform sighed as he faced back forward, not paying attention to the intricate clay sculptures surrounding him, only focusing on going in the right direction of the emerald. "Technically," he started, voice sharp, "Espio did kill me. However, because of how that reality was made, I didn't die."

"It was made up of your past dreams?" Shadow nodded at Red's question. "So were you dreaming all that happened?"

"Yes and no," the hedgehog simply answered. "It was real until I woke up here from the coma." At the echidna's questioning look, he elaborated, "Our Eggman got in a hard," _and very influential_ , "hit on me."

"So what am I exactly?"

"As it was said earlier," Rouge smirked down at him, wings still flapping. "You're a dream come true. Well, most of you and your friends are. Don't know about Shadow's Sonic or Espio though. They might belong in the nightmare category."

"Didn't I tell you to stop calling them mine?" Shadow bit out, frowning at Rouge's faux-innocent expression.

"Huh…so I used to be just a fabrication of your mind…" The Ultimate Lifeform furrowed his brow at the echidna's off tone, not able to decipher it. The present frown on his muzzle deepened when a thought popped up inside his head.

"Don't tell me that you're having an existential crisis." Shadow deadpanned as he turned a corner, going down an alley lined with unlit torches. He has had enough of those to last ten lifetimes; he was _not_ going to put up with someone else having one around him.

Red shook his head, dismissing that idea as he hopped over a small pile of rubble. "I'm not. I'm just thinking about how much of an irritant your-" At Shadow's scowl, he changed his words, "-the other Knuckles had to be to dream of me like this."

"He's loud and can be too short-tempered."

"Oh really? That's funny hon, coming from you." Shadow refused to acknowledge Rouge's statement. He remained silent as she continued on. "So you don't care about that Red, which isn't that surprising knowing you now, but what about your home being gone?"

Said echidna shrugged. "There wasn't really anything there that you don't have here. There's sun, wind, peace, well…not exactly at the moment, but there will be. It's the same, besides the doubles running around. A plus is that the Master Emerald is no longer my responsibility."

"Not like you cared about it before," Shadow said.

Red shrugged again. "I had to retrieve it from whatever rubble it was left in. Now I don't have to do that."

Rouge put her hands on her hips and huffed. "I for one am glad that you aren't in charge. The things that that precious gem must've been through…!" Shadow and Red glanced up at the visibly distressed bat before sharing a look and sighing simultaneously. "I heard that! It's not _my_ fault that you two don't find the jewel as gorgeous and perfect as I do!"

"If Rogue had acted like that…" Red murmured with a grimace.

"The gem has more attributes than just being _pretty_ Rouge." Shadow breathed out, slowing down when he reached a split. He immediately turned left after tuning in on the emerald's energy.

"I know _that_. But it being absolutely _stunning_ has to be a major one." Rouge giggled to herself, most likely imagining the Master Emerald in her grasp, before she calmed down and gazed at Shadow curiously. "You know, I say we go back on the topic of your mind and the wonderful things it can do, Shadow." Two pairs of eyes trained on her. "If it's true that Red is the way he is because of your experiences with Knuckie, then why are the other Sonic and Espio the way they are?"

The Ultimate Lifeform unconsciously slowed down before shaking his head and speeding back up, believing to know where the bat was going with this. "Remember that all of this is based on a mere theory, Rouge."

"I know, but it doesn't hurt to wonder, does it?"

Shadow didn't answer her.

Rouge took this as a sign to continue. "Like…let's talk about the other Espio. He's trouble with a capital 'T'. He's clearly out for blood and power, and we don't even know _why_ yet. He's determined as hell too to get what he wants, not caring about anybody else. Doesn't that remind you of someone? Or rather, it shows _me_ what could've happened if you hadn't-"

"Rouge…" Shadow growled lowly.

The agent held her hands up innocently. "Can't a girl figure things out for herself?" A huff was her only response. "Now, with Sonic, he's been through some stuff. It's not hard to see that he's hurting under that rough and tough exterior. Call me crazy, but I can see you empathizing with him a little bit. Maybe you included parts of your own psyche when making their personas…"

"That's ridiculous," Shadow immediately opposed, "It's just a-"

"Coincidence?" Rouge finished, "I don't think so, and you don't either. But," she shrugged, "like you said sugar, it's just a theory."

Shadow subtly clenched his fists. He knew that Rouge's words could possibly hold some truth to them, given everything that they have witnessed, but he favored that they didn't. The hedgehog wouldn't want to think of the other Sonic and Espio as _reminders_ of what happened. He had enough trouble dealing with the Mobians on their own; he didn't need to have to go into what they could _possibly_ symbolize as well.

"I'm not asking for any specifics here." Shadow blinked when Red's voice reached his ears. He had forgotten that he was there. The echidna was staring at Rouge before his gaze drifted down to the Ultimate Lifeform, expression somewhat cautious. "But I have the feeling that at least some of this is linked to…"

He trailed off when Shadow nodded. "Yes, it is."

Rouge pursed her lips, glancing between the two. "Wait a minute…he knows?"

"Yes."

"Do _all_ of them know?"

"No."

The agent furrowed her brow, the ghost of a frown on her face. "I know that you didn't just outright tell him-"

"I am right here."

"-so how…"

"He found out."

"After just a couple _days_ of knowing him? How many hints were you _dropping_ , hon?"

"Just one," Shadow answered as he turned a corner only to decrease his speed down to a walk when a massive pile of clay and stone appeared before him, as tall as a one-story building. _The emerald is in there. It must have collapsed a tower that was in its flight path._ The Ultimate Lifeform strolled forward until he could put a gloved hand on the crumbling clay. When Red stepped up to his side, Rouge landing on the other, he muttered out, "The emerald's buried underneath this."

"Are you sure?" Rouge questioned.

"Positive."

"Alright." The agent grinned over to the echidna. "Time to get to digging, Red!"

"You know…I've had a gut feeling that this might happen." The red Mobian let out a heavy exhale before turning his hands into fists. "Might as well get it over with…I know that I'm not getting out of this…"

The echidna took a step forward, but before he could actually do anything, a familiar voice made him pause.

" _We got the other red Chaos emerald. No sign of Penumbra though."_

Hearing Knuckles' words, Shadow dug the communicator out of the cuff of his glove and just stared at it, letting the information register. It wasn't like Shadow had fully expected Penumbra to be where that emerald was all this time, but it would have been nice to have one less liability. His twin was still unpredictable, and having him loose and unsupervised at the moment wasn't the best situation to be in.

 _But where could he be though?_

Rouge hummed. "I guess your double is pretty good at hide-and-seek Shadow." She dusted some dust off her white boot. "But at least they found the trouble-causing emerald."

"I bet he didn't have to dig to find it…" Red mumbled before hopping up and digging his knuckles into the mound. Once he gained his footing, the echidna climbed up to the top.

Shadow watched as the echidna kicked up dust and dirt when he began working. The striped hedgehog held up the communicator to his mouth and pressed the button to answer, but another voice beat him to it.

" _Uh…cool. Just-"_

" _IF YOU HAVE ACHIEVED YOUR MISSION, COME BACK TO RENDEZVOUS AT THE HOME AND WAIT FOR THE REST TO ARRIVE."_

Thinking that his input wasn't exactly needed, the Ultimate Lifeform released the button and put the device back in his cuff. Rouge rose a brow. "You're not going to jump in?"

"There's no need to." Shadow crossed his arms. "I'll radio in when we get all of the emeralds."

" _Yeah please come. I don't care what Shadow said, this robot makes me SEVERELY uncomfortable."_

" _I AM NOT A DANGER TO YOU."_

" _Right now you're not!"_

Rouge snickered at the conversation. "Looks like Omega isn't making friends with that croc anytime soon."

"I'm not surprised," Shadow replied. He knew how much of an opponent Espio's Omega was, and seeing the bot suddenly being 'friendly' wasn't going to automatically make the others forget that.

" _Wait, so no one else is there, and nobody is using their communicators?"_ Knuckles' voice grew in volume. _"What's the point in_ _ **having**_ _them then? Amy's group probably dropped it in the water, I bet Sonic_ _ **lost**_ _the damn thing, and who_ _ **knows**_ _what bat-girl's group is doing right now!"_

"Temper temper…" Rouge said like the other could hear her. "We're working _too_ you know."

" _W-What if something happened to them?"_ Shadow labeled that voice as TT's, and he almost reached for the communicator again until Tails spoke up.

" _There's nothing to worry about. Unfortunately, Sonic loses things all the time, Amy and Rosy have to deal with_ _ **two**_ _Charmys, and well, Shadow and Rouge aren't the most…"_

" _Reliable?"_ Knuckles finished.

" _Not exactly that…"_

"It's nice to know what they think of us," the albino agent commented with a smirk. "We aren't unreliable… I prefer the term chaotically neutral, don't you agree?"

"Sure, Rouge." Shadow absently concurred, not paying attention to the background conversation anymore.

The pair waited and observed as more and more clay flew out of the hole Red had managed to create, sidestepping any clumps of dirt that was accidently sent their way. After several minutes of seeing Red dig, relocate, and dig again, the echidna finally popped out of a hole and held the shining purple emerald in his dusty grip.

"Ooo!" Rouge cooed, holding her hands out, "Come to mama!"

Red slid down the large mound, wiping the clay off his tail as some of the crumbling earth gathered around his shoes. The echidna tossed the violet jewel over to the bat, shaking his head at the sight of her dusting it off and cradling it.

The red Mobian knocked his gloves together to minimalize the amount of dirt there before linking his hands behind his head, turning towards the striped hedgehog. "Are we done here?"

Shadow nodded. "We are. Let's go."

When he grabbed Red's wrist, the echidna couldn't keep in the exasperated groan.

* * *

"And _why_ exactly did I have to part with the emerald?"

Shadow took his wandering eyes off of the many flashing, colorful, and moving lights of Casino Park that contrasted the night sky above and trained them on his partner, whose formerly white fur now shone a multitude of hues as they traversed the crowded streets of the popular city.

"It was so you don't lose it," he clipped as he glanced away from her irritated look. "The people here would kill for something shiny. What makes you think that they would just stop at their wallets?"

Rouge huffed and folded her arms in front of her, annoyance swirling in her teal orbs as they roamed the buildings filled with slots, roulette wheels, and very expensive looking items on shelves begging to be stolen by a particular thief. Her anger slowly dissipated at the sights.

She tapped a finger on her arm in slight agitation. " _You_ got to keep yours and not leave it in the jet with your sleep-obsessed friend."

"I have my reasons Rouge."

The bat turned up her nose at him. " _Sure_ you do." Rouge then began to veer away from the hedgehog, heading towards a well-lit section with tons of machines and tables. "Well, you can make up for my lack of emerald by letting us have a little fun. I know that we don't have any money at the moment," she peered back over to him and winked, "but I can fix that problem in a second."

Shadow frowned when he reached over and grabbed her upper arm, pulling her back to his side. "Remember what we _came_ here for, Rouge. Does anything else here really take precedence over a Chaos emerald?"

"Hmph. You really aren't any fun Shadow." The agent whirled around on him and poked a finger in that furry chest of his. "Fine. _After_ we get the emerald, I'm going to enjoy myself before we get back to the doom and gloom. You better believe that, sugar."

"…You're impossible," Shadow simply uttered before letting her go and paying attention to where the gem's energy was emitting from. Narrowed rubies swept the area until they zeroed in on a lit building a couple blocks down with people walking in and out of its open doors. "In there," he told her as he made his way through the crowds.

The Ultimate Lifeform stopped when he reached the entrance, waiting for Rouge to catch up to him. The partners nodded to each other before entering the building, taking in the people enjoying themselves at the various slots available. The voices and laughter were loud as they bounced off the flickering walls, the dim atmosphere making the lights pop even more.

Shadow ignored all of the distractions, the door on an adjacent wall to his right gaining his full attention. He glanced up at the neon sign above it, which read, 'From Ancient Antiques to Eye-popping Electronics, start bidding here!'.

 _Of course. A gem that holds immense power is about to be auctioned off. Everything holds monetary value these days._ Shadow nudged Rouge and bobbed his head in that direction. When she understood his gesture, the duo walked over to the doorway and pushed open the door only to enter a room similar to the one before, but instead of slots everywhere, there were tables and chairs. Over to the side, there was a stand for refreshments. At the opposite end of the room was a stage with an occupied podium situated on it with items lined up on shelves on either side of the suited man speaking at the moment.

"There it is Shadow!" Rouge whispered over a man bidding a hundred dollars for a pair of SOAP shoes. The bat pointed to a yellow jewel that pulsated with life, its aura outshining everything around it. The gem was positioned inside of a clear cylinder container beside delicate jewelry.

She smirked over at him. "So…distraction, or no distraction?"

"Distraction," Shadow instantly answered, "I don't feel like dealing with angry citizens and determined cops." _Though technically it isn't anyone's property._

"You read my mind, hon," she patted his shoulder before going back out the way they came. "Give me a minute or two." She called softly over her shoulder, "You'll know it when you see it. Meet me on the roof afterwards."

Shadow grunted in response when she left. The hedgehog – thankful of his color – slunk into the shadows to remain inconspicuous as he waited for Rouge to make a move. Him just standing there in the open would surely prompt some questions.

True to Rouge's words, the distraction came about a minute and a half later in the form of bright lights. The whole space went from a dim darkness to a blinding white so suddenly that Shadow could hear the shocked pained groans from the crowd. Eyes painlessly adjusting, the hedgehog warped over to the stage, took the case and the emerald inside, and then suddenly he was standing on the roof of the building, feeling a light cool breeze ruffle his quills.

He kept his eye out for his partner as he emptied the case, absently wondering how long it would be before they noticed the gem missing, and wishing that he would be away before that happened. Black ears flickered when the sound of swishing met them, and Shadow turned to see Rouge landing at his side with a sly smile.

"I'm guessing it went well?"

Shadow tossed her the jewel. "Very. Now we can leave since-"

"Oh no you don't!" She put a hand on her hip. "I'm going to have some fun, remember?"

The hedgehog kept himself from running a hand down his face. "Rouge, a Chaos emerald has been _stolen._ Do you really think that they would overlook the world's best jewel thief and me with my history?" A blaring alarm went off, and Shadow grabbed her arm again. "Let me answer that for you. No, no they won't."

There was a sudden scene change, and the pair were now standing at the very outskirts of the city where the jet was waiting. A small pout adorned Rouge's face. "Fine Mr. Pushy. But I'm coming back here later."

Shadow sighed. "I don't care what you do then."

The pout morphed into a grin. "I think you might, because I'm dragging you with me."

Before the hedgehog could vehemently refuse the offer, there was movement from behind them. The duo turned around to see Red dropping to the ground, communicator in his hand. Yawning, the echidna shuffled up to Shadow and held out the device. "Woke up to them wanting you… Was going to answer, but…I heard my other self's voice and I'm not awake enough to deal with him."

Shadow tilted his head and took the silent communicator. "They aren't saying anything now though."

Red stretched a bit. "…stopped right before y'all appeared…think they were trying to contact you for a while now…"

"Did they sound serious?" Rouge asked, "If you were even alert enough to tell…" she added as an afterthought.

They weren't surprised when red shoulders rose and fell in a sloppy shrug.

Shadow went ahead and pushed the button on the side of the device. "Hello?"

" _So you_ _ **did**_ _have your communicator! Why the hell have you been ignoring us?"_

"Calm down, echidna. What do you need?"

" _Do you have the emeralds?"_

Shadow frowned when his question was answered with a question, even though he had technically done the same thing.

"Yes, we have them."

" _So you're on your way back now?"_

Shadow exhaled harshly through his nose. "You still haven't answered me."

" _Since you're on your way, you can know when you get back to the house."_

Rouge hummed at Knuckles' abrupt hang-up. "Someone's salty."

"Yeah, I'm glad that I held off talking with him." Red rubbed his tired eyes.

Shadow tucked the communicator away. "Just get into the jet; we're heading back."

"I wonder what's got him so worked up?" Rouge climbed up into the pilot seat, placing the yellow emerald in her lap. "I know it wasn't just because we didn't answer the radio."

"We'll find out soon enough…" Red murmured, settling himself back into his comfortable spot. He then gave Shadow a lethargic confused look as the jet started up. "Wait… Can't you just teleport us there…?"

 _Everyone needs a break, and this is mine…also, Rouge does have to return the jet_ , Shadow thought as his lips twitched. "You're complaining? It's more time for you to sleep."

Red blinked and a sleepy chuckle filled the air. "You're an alright guy, Shadow…"

"You hear that hon?" Rouge's teasing tone was easy to decipher. "Savor it, because you may not ever hear it again."

Shadow sent her a weak glare before activating his skates and leaving a trail of singed grasses in his wake.

* * *

Espio was swiveling back and forth in his soft chair as he gazed up at the large monitor in front of him, examining the many pictures of the second base the chameleon was planning to renovate. It was very spacious and elaborate, which was perfect for what the reptile had in store. However, Espio did find it strange that there were random metallic balls laying around in some rooms…

The chameleon deemed those unimportant for now as he reached up and searched around in the systems again, particularly the archives. Metal Sonic was a unique robot. He could talk for himself, think for himself, make his own orders…he had personality. Most importantly, he had the speed of Sonic. All because of DNA…

If Espio could help it, Metal wouldn't be unique for very long.

Once he found what he was looking for, the chameleon clicked on the file, and large blueprints partially covered up the images of the underwater base. The ninja smirked at what was shown to him, thinking that coming to this dimension was the best thing he could have ever done.

When he heard footsteps approaching, Espio closed out of the blueprints. He didn't want Eggman to know what he was planning quite yet. He didn't want the doctor to somehow ruin his plans.

Espio swiveled around in his chair, watching as the collared human stepped into the room with a fully operational Omega entering after him. Metal remained in the doorway, leaning against the frame. An amber iris examined Omega's body before regarding Eggman. "He's completely fixed, correct?"

He reveled in the heat sent his way, the hostility making him stronger instead of getting him to cower. "Yes," the doctor growled out, arms crossed, "Back to one hundred percent."

"I'd like to thank you for replacing his arm as well," Espio said with a demeaning smirk, "True, it was…functional before, but not practical."

"I TRIED MY HARDEST."

The chameleon nodded at his trusted robot. "I'm sure you did Omega." He then turned to Metal, raising a brow. "Did you detect anything suspicious while Eggman was working on him? For instance, was anything inserted that shouldn't have been?"

"I did not see any of the sort." A monotonous voice responded, "I would have ended the doctor's worthless existence if he had tried."

Eggman whirled on him. " _Worthless?!_ If anyone's _worthless_ , it's- _"_ The man promptly fell to his knees when an electric current flowed through his body, making his entire frame shake violently.

Espio just watched on, smirk widening. "That's good to hear." He gestured the blue bot over, facing the monitor once again. "Come over here, I have another request."

"Another?" Metal stepped up to his side, red opticals trained on him. "You are beginning to ask for too much, chameleon."

 _You'll be whistling another tune soon enough_ , Espio mentally replied before waving the mech off. "Just hear me out." He pointed to one of the base's pictures. There was a nearly inaudible gasp behind him, and the ninja glanced back to see a recovered Eggman staring at the screen as well. It wasn't farfetched to say that he recognized the place.

Espio ignored him. "I want you to take Eggman, Omega, and as many robots as you can to this base. It's clear that it has been abandoned for a long while, and I want you to supervise as the others work. The faster it's cleaned up, the better. It will be the Master Emerald's new home."

The chameleon could feel the displeasure radiating off of Metal (and the loathing coming from a specific human in the back). "And why do I have to be present, exactly?"

"So the work doesn't slack." Espio reclined in his seat, relaxing and enjoying the control he had over everyone here, obvious or otherwise. "The groundwork has to be laid out before the machine for the ME can actually be built." The chameleon cocked his head at the Sonic look-a-like, knowing the response to his question before he asked it. "I'm doing this for you. You _do_ want the Master Emerald's energy flowing inside of you as soon as possible, right?"

"So _this_ is what you planned all along!" Eggman gritted out, "You came here for my resources! You – gah…" The man was on the floor again, the button in Metal's grip being pushed.

"Silence," the blue bot ordered before replying to Espio. "I did not know that infusing me was part of your plan."

"It had always been. I just had to work out any _kinks,_ " he bobbed his head toward the agonized scientist, "out before it became concrete. So, will you go?"

Metal nodded. "I will."

"Great." Espio turned to see all of the occupants of the room, propping his cheek on a clenched fist. "So while he supervises, Omega, you will be in charge of the group of bots sent to do the manual labor."

"UNDERSTOOD."

"Eggman." Said man stiffened, jaw clenching like he wanted to say something, but refrained from doing so. Yes, Espio's stay was going well for him…except his little failure from before. He inwardly frowned. The fight with the other him did not go as planned, but he would have his twin's blood on his hands soon enough. Espio refocused on the here and now. "You will be _part_ of the force of bots that will be working on any faults in the circuitry and electronics." When he was met with irate silence, Espio poured venom into his next words. "If you refuse to, I'm sure your body would make a good enough dummy for Penumbra to practice on."

The gulp was audible. "Things were not supposed to end up this way…"

"Face the music Eggman." Espio jeered. "They did, and there's nothing you can do." An amber orb then met with artificial reds. "Time to gather the bots and set off. I disabled every functional switch and button in Eggman's hovercraft except the ones for flight, so you are safe while he rides in it."

Metal made a move toward the door, but he paused in his steps. "What will you do while we are gone?"

"I've got some preparing of my own I have to do," he simply answered, "Don't worry about me. Do as much as you can before coming back for the trade-off tomorrow."

"Trade-off?" Eggman questioned, glancing between Metal and Espio. "What trade-off?"

"How else do you think we're getting the Master Emerald?" The ninja uttered before shooing the human off and returning his attention to the large screen. "Figure it out yourself."

The doctor didn't say anything else – Espio had a sneaking suspicion that Metal had something to do with it – as the trio left, the door closing behind them.

"Alright…" The chameleon reopened up the file from earlier and looked over the blueprints. He hummed to himself before pulling up the floor plan of the base he was currently in, searching the monitor for the place's infirmary, if the doctor had bothered to install one. He zeroed in on a tiny room labeled 'First Aid'. "There it is."

The chameleon patiently waited about ten minutes to make sure the others have gone before standing up, grabbing Penumbra's remote, and leaving the office. Espio strolled down the halls of the underground base like he owned it, light footsteps echoing throughout the silent walkways.

It didn't take long for him to reach his destination. It was a small storage closet, but instead of mops and brooms, it was filled with health-related supplies. Espio entered the small space and began to shuffle through the items, hoping that the doctor had what he needed. He should…even though the chameleon didn't know what Eggman would need needles for. Perhaps for self-evaluation if he had come down with something? Maybe.

It was when he moved over a box of Band-Aids when he found them. Sterile needles and syringes. Pleased, Espio grabbed the bag and prepared four of them, palming a small plastic container to store them all in once he was done. He labeled them 'S', 'P', 'C', and 'R' with an available pen before he left.

Silver's room was first. The chameleon ignored the muffled raspy screams when he passed the threshold, making his way toward the convulsing psychic huddling in the far corner. His shoes were getting stained, but he would deal with that later after his entire mission was complete. The blindfolded and gagged hedgehog tried violently pulling away when Espio grabbed him by his red splotched arm.

"Stop moving, or I'll kill you." And just like that, Silver was still. Or rather, as still as he could be while his body was trembling like it was subzero temperatures in the room.

Sure, the ninja could very easily take samples from the painted floor and walls, but he figured for the best results, he should take it right from the source.

He plunged the needle into the crook of Silver's elbow, whimpers pouring out of the rodent's mouth around the cloth. The psychic was smart enough not to move though. Espio quickly filled the tiny container with blood before yanking the needle out of the vein without any remorse, causing a pained yelp.

Espio shoved him away when he stood up, observing dispassionately as Silver curled back into himself, crying into the blindfold and crawling away from where he thought the chameleon was. The reptile turned around and left, lips twitching upwards.

Rogue was next. As the chameleon approached the room, he frowned and looked down at the arm the bat had sunk his teeth into, now healed because of Penumbra. That winged Mobian's laughter echoed around in his mind, and that paired with the image of the bat being torn into while he had a wide smile on his face made Espio purse his lips.

He just shook his head and became expressionless once more. The boy wouldn't be his problem much longer.

When the chameleon stepped inside, those dull teal eyes were immediately focused on him.

"Aw…you're healed…that's too…bad…"

Espio scoffed at the beaten and broken bat propped up on the opposite wall. As punishment – yes, he decided that the other needed more – he had swapped out the cloth gag for a highly uncomfortable muzzle that unfortunately allowed just enough mouth movement so the bat could talk.

And to smile, apparently…

Rogue's arms were also bound with cuffs _and_ tight rope so another incident like before couldn't happen.

"Be lucky that you're still alive after that stunt you pulled." The chameleon scowled as his approached, gripping the needle in his hand tightly.

The bat's head lolled to the side, dim irises never wavering. "…lucky…sure…"

Espio said nothing when he squatted down and readied the syringe over the skin of the other's arm. There was no resistance.

"What's with…you…and needles…man?" Rogue let out a breathy chuckle, voice weak and cracking. "…wonder what…the surprise…is gonna be…this time…"

He had no response as Espio focused on pulling the blood, but what the bat whispered next was so unexpected that it made the reptile unconsciously tense.

"…you're gonna die…"

A sole amber orb glanced up to meet empty teals, the bright smile underneath making Rogue's expression contradictory.

"But not before…all your bones are…broken… Can't exactly…make it painless…right dude…? Taste your blood as you…bleed out…"

Espio's gaze snapped down to the bat's mouth, seeing his own blood caking those lips. The smile widened, and the teeth shown still had red stains on them.

The laughter started, and the chameleon couldn't get the container to fill up fast enough. "…scared…huh…? Grow…a pair…man…" The bat's shoulders shook as the chortles increased in volume. "It's…just… _pain…_ "

Espio tore the sharp object from the other's arm, punching him in the face hard enough to send the white Mobian to the ground. "You're threats are all empty. They mean _nothing._ "

His words were drowned out by the warped laughter that drove his feet to head for the exit.

The last two were Penumbra and Cream.

The chameleon took two syringes out of the container before he scanned his hand, the door sliding open in front of him. Inside of the room, the two mammals were sitting facing each other, heads turned in his direction. One gaze was filled with worry, but the other had a mixture of anger, curiosity, and fright. It seemed like they had been having some kind of conversation; obviously it had been cut short.

Espio gestured for the striped hedgehog (now clean after getting hosed down) to come closer. "Come here, Penumbra."

The hedgie spared Cream one last glance before making his way over, slumped and pathetic looking.

The rabbit reached out for him, but didn't move from her spot. Tears welled up in her eyes. "W-Where are you taking h-him?"

"I'm not taking him anywhere," Espio stated. Once Penumbra got close enough to him, the reptile grabbed the other's elbow and held it steady. When the 'hog attempted to pull back, Espio pinched the skin and inwardly smirked at the whine he received. "Stop moving."

Black ears flattened themselves against his head. Penumbra weakly glared down at the floor. "Sorry."

Maroon orbs followed the syringe as it got closer to piercing the skin. A loud gasp came from the bunny at the sight of the menacing looking needle. "Wh-What are you doing to him?!"

"I'm drawing blood," Espio responded lowly as the sharp tool pierced the skin, tightening his hold when Penumbra instinctively jerked. He glared over at the rabbit. "No more questions."

The hedgehog whimpered when the red liquid began to leave him. "Hurt arm…"

Cream silently witnessed the interaction, biting her lip in visual concern. Espio knew that she wouldn't stay quiet for long. "Can…Can I ask you o-one more question?"

Espio frowned, but nodded anyway. Mildly interested in what she had to ask.

The rabbit swallowed thickly before saying, "Who…Who are you making Mr. Penumbra h-hurt?"

The ninja snorted, pulling the needle out of the dark arm. He swapped the full one out for an empty, seeing Penumbra back up a couple of steps while rubbing his abused limb. "No one that you know." It seemed like Cream didn't know to be relieved or frightened at the fact that people – strangers or not – are actually getting attacked. He gazed at her timid form. "It's your turn."

At his words, she began to panic. "N-No! I don't…I don't want to… That looks s-scary! Please don't make me!"

Seeing Cream scared made Penumbra growl. Those sharp eyes darted from the bunny to the needle, and he made some kind of connection in his head. The hedgehog moved himself so that he was in between the chameleon and rabbit, quills bristled. "No!" the hedgie snarled, "No hurt! Espio…" he paused for a moment, "You say no hurt Cream!"

"It won't hurt if she doesn't move," Espio bit back, "Step aside!"

Penumbra refused, and the reptile was just about to palm his remote when Cream pushed the rodent to the side with a shaking hand. The hedgie blinked over at her before calming down and relaxing some of his muscles. "Cream…"

"I-I've always been scared of needles…" She sniffed, standing in front of Espio and holding out her trembling arm. "B-But…Mama said that b-big kids aren't…" Cream stared up at the chameleon with moist chocolates, confidence flowing into them. "A-And big kids are strong! I-I have to be strong for both Mr. Penumbra and me! We h-have to stay strong until Mr. Sonic comes to find us!"

The hedgehog smiled at the bunny's turnaround and held her unoccupied hand, providing comfort.

"That's a nice speech," Espio started as he inserted the needle and slowly drew the blood, not caring about Cream's face twisting up in pain. "It's too bad that you're missing one little detail…" When the blood filled the small cylinder, he slid it out of her vein but kept a grip on her arm. Espio looked her in the eyes. "No one's coming to get you."

"Y-You're lying!" Cream yanked her arm away and backed up into Penumbra's secure hold. She didn't see the scowl the hedgehog was giving him. "He'll come find and r-rescue me! H-He always rescues his friends!"

"Why? Because he's a _hero_?" Espio spat out the last word, turning around to face the exit door. "Heroes don't always win. Believe what you want to, but that won't change the outcome." He peered over his shoulder at the duo. "See you in the morning."

Espio left the room and picked up the rest of the syringes he had left by the wall. He held up the container they were in and carefully placed the last two in there. The ninja scanned all of them and smirked. He believed that this made up for his loss from earlier.

He was going to sleep well tonight.

* * *

 **Next chapter…eight Chaos emeralds in one place!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co. for good reason… No one would be safe, even little pet Chaos…**

 **Chapter 26- pHonE caLLs**

VC sighed as he dropped his communicator in his lap, leaning his head back into the couch cushions and rubbing the heels of his palms into his closed eyes. The green crocodile ran his hands down his face until they were laying limp on either side of him. He let out another puff of air before glancing down at the cyan Chaos emerald the nice Sonic had left which was laying in his lap as well.

The croc stared down at the item before picking it up and examining its brilliance, twisting and turning it in his hands. When his life had been normal and the only thing the large reptile had to worry about was paying his bills on time, he had never _dreamed_ of holding one of nature's rarities in his own grasp. But then again…he had never thought that he would end up in the same room with the Master Emerald itself and a robot who may or may not end up shooting at him point-blank.

VC shifted his yellow gaze from the shining gem to the more powerful jewel sitting in the middle of the floor, covering everything in the room in its green light. Then he snapped his lemon orbs over to focus on the red and black mech sitting on the opposite side of the couch, his artificial optics trained on nothing but the large glowing relic.

Just to think, he was in this situation – this dangerous and life-threatening situation – because of one single phone call.

However, at the same time, without that call, he wouldn't be here at all.

A frown grew on VC's snout, thinking about the Mobian who had contacted him that day. Rogue. Who _knew_ what kind of hell that chameleon was putting him and Silver through. Yes, he was concerned about this world's Cream being there as well; however, Espio had an actual _reason_ to target the bat and hedgehog. VC didn't know if the chameleon was heartless enough to torture an innocent child – he wouldn't be surprised if he was – but Espio had a vendetta against their _entire_ group. The croc was seriously worried about in what _condition_ the devil would return their friends in.

VC groaned explosively, slumping into the sofa. "This whole thing just sucks…"

His body unconsciously tensed when a mechanical head turned in his direction. "DO YOU REQUIRE COMFORT?"

The croc squished himself into the arm of the couch and shook his head vehemently. Those massive metallic claws would snap his spine if the robot provided _comfort._ "Oh no big guy. _You_ are staying over _there_. I'm fine man. Promise."

"IF YOU INSIST." Omega's opticals were still on the reptile, who was feeling uncomfortable under the mech's gaze. "USUALLY SITUATIONS LIKE THESE REQUIRE EXTERNAL COMFORT. IN THE WORLD THAT YOU CAME FROM, WAS THAT NONEXISTENT?"

"Uh…no…" VC relaxed his wary muscles a little bit. Don't get him wrong, he was more than ready to run for his life at the drop of a dime, but the robot had plenty of chances to kill him, and he was clearly still alive. Maybe he shouldn't treat the other like the brainless murderer his subordinate counterpart was. He wasn't treating _this_ world's Espio like that…

The croc cleared his throat. "Comfort was uh…still a _thing._ What I meant was I don't really need it." _Especially from you._

"I UNDERSTAND." Omega looked out of the nearest window, seeing the trees in the background. "DO YOU NEED A DISTRACTION THEN? SOMETHING SIMILAR TO A FIREWORK DISPLAY?"

VC rose a dubious brow. "You have fireworks?"

"I HAVE A FLAMETHROWER."

The croc blinked, wondering why the hell was this robot Shadow's _teammate._ "Yeah, no. Again, I'm _fine._ Just…go back to protecting the Master Emerald, okay?"

"PROTECTING? I AM JUST SITTING HERE. NO EFFORT REQUIRED. ARE YOU POSITIVE THAT YOU DO NOT WANT TO SEE-"

"COMPLETELY positive!"

Before Omega could make another attempt that VC would _surely_ shut down, the duo were quieted when there was the sound of a door opening behind them. The croc's breath hitched when he realized that there was actually another person in the home with them. He had – regrettably – forgotten all about her.

The two occupants of the living room glanced back to see a sluggish Vanilla walking down the short hallway towards them. It looked like she had just woken up from a nap. VC wondered if she had been asleep ever since she had left the group before people began their searches.

At the slightly surprised expression when seeing the near empty house, the croc believed that she had been. "Oh…" She breathed out, scanning the room before zeroing in on Omega and then VC. "Sorry if I interrupted anything sweetie."

"You weren't interrupting anything." He gave Omega a pointed look and then gazed back at her with a slightly uncomfortable smile. He knew that the atmosphere was going to be a little – a lotta – bit awkward now. VC didn't know her _nearly_ enough to sooth her. Hell, he doubted he could if they've been friends all his life. "Um, in case you're wonderin', the others went out to search for Chaos emeralds. Me and Omega stayed behind to guard the big one here," he said, gesturing to the ME.

Vanilla's expression warmed somewhat, and VC noticed that the mother was more put together than she had been earlier. She needed that nap. The rabbit adjusted something in her arms, and the croc just now saw the bundled up blanket in her hold. Something was definitely wrapped in it.

"I'm sure that they are having fun," she muttered cordially, but there was still a glint of sadness in her cocoa irises.

VC floundered for a response so no weird silences could settle. When he remembered a piece of information that the rabbit hadn't heard yet, he gave her a more genuine smile. "Yeah, they're gatherin' them for tomorrow. Nobody told you yet, but we're getting Cream back!"

Vanilla's expression was unreadable for a quick second, but then nothing but pure glee and relief flooded into her face. "Cream…She's…?"

The crocodile nodded and wasn't ready for the hug he received when she travelled to his side of the couch. VC chuckled awkwardly, a bit uncomfortable at the moment, but he let it happen. He wasn't going to bring down her high like that.

The mother pulled back and stood up straight again, wiping the tears welling up in her eyes with her unoccupied hand. Then, she had a guilty expression on her face as if she regretted what she had just done. At least a little bit. "Oh my gosh…I'm so sorry! I don't think you're the Vector from here…and I just invaded-"

VC waved her off. "It's okay ma'am! Really."

"SO YOU WOULD RECEIVE COMFORT FROM HER AND NOT ME?" Omega asked, looking in their direction.

A tick formed on the croc's forehead. "This is different, and I'm sure you KNOW that!"

"IF YOU SAY SO."

Vanilla smiled at their interactions before glancing over by the door, a thoughtful expression on her face. VC sent her an inquisitive look, and she answered, "I'm about to go visit my home so I can…bury…" She choked on her words, staring down at the bundle in her arms. It took a second, but it finally clicked for VC. Cheese was in there. Oh man…

The green reptile stood up after moving the Chaos emerald to the side, biting his lip in hesitation. He couldn't exactly let her go alone, no matter how uncomfortable things might get. And he couldn't exactly tell her to wait for the others to come to bury her loved pet. "I'll…walk you there!" He tucked the communicator into the cuff of his glove. "Can't have you goin' alone."

If she was surprised at his offer, she didn't show it. "Honey, you don't have-"

"I want to," he cut her off, already moving towards the front door. VC glanced back to see her following him. "How far is your house from here?"

"About a twenty minute walk," Vanilla answered softly before following up with a, "Thank you so much for going with me."

"It's no problem!" _Besides the awkwardness, but that isn't a big thing._ VC focused on Omega. "Protect those emeralds while were gone, 'kay? And _no_ flamethrowers."

"THAT IS NOT VERY STIMULATING. I CANNOT SEE HOW THE ECHIDNA DOES THIS. I TAKE BACK MY WORDS FROM EARLIER HELPING HIM WITH THIS TASK."

VC took that as an 'Okay'.

Most of the walk was quiet. The crocodile let the rabbit lead the way to her home, admiring the scenery in silence. Even though the mother had been happy that her child was coming back, she had a dark aura surrounding her again as she hug the Chao close to her, murmuring incoherent nothings. Occasionally, the reptile would see a single tear drip from the mammal's cheek.

VC couldn't bring himself to start a conversation, so they had kept any thoughts to themselves until Vanilla had regathered herself and said, "It's not far now." The croc hummed to tell her that he had heard. The motherly figure turned and gave him a small smile, a shaky one, but she was trying. "So sweetie, you've met your other self right?" The reptile nodded. "How do you like him so far?"

VC scratched his head, glad that she was the one to instigate. "Well, he's a pretty cool dude. Loud though." _There's no way that I'm as loud as him._ "It's kinda weird seein' myself run a whole _agency_ y'know? And there's the thing too about taking care of a little kid."

Vanilla giggled. "He is a hard worker, but it's good that he's not running it alone."

"Yeah, Espio's a decent guy too." VC crossed his arms and huffed. " _Way_ better than ours." He then realized that he might've said the wrong thing when there was a beat of silence. Vanilla was looking down at her pet again. The croc reached out but didn't touch her. "Hey…sorry. I shouldn't have-"

"It's alright honey…" The rabbit sighed before looking at VC again, a glint in her eyes that almost made him stumble in his step. "I'm not the one for violence, but do _whatever_ you can to stop that evil Espio. The world…isn't safe with him around…"

VC blinked before nodding, expression determined. That chameleon had done nothing but lie and cause pain wherever he went. "He'll get what's comin' to him. Karma's a b – mean woman."

Vanilla caught the croc's slip up and chuckled, that glint now gone from her gaze. She faced back forward and pointed over to the house coming up. "That's it. There's a shovel in the back that we…" She took a deep breath. "…can use."

The green reptile took his cue to jog ahead to the back of the dainty little house. Back there, he saw a small garden with different flowers and vegetables. Yellow orbs drifted toward the home's back door to see a shovel leaning against the wall of the building along with a smaller one that Cream would have been able to lift easily. There was even a blue toy shovel laying in the grass by them…

The croc held in a sigh as he grabbed the biggest tool and waited for Vanilla to catch up. When she did, the mother scanned the yard until subdued chocolates settled on the area behind the garden. She pointed to a square of grass a couple meters away from the flowers. "He always loved helping with the garden…"

VC gave her a sympathetic look before going over to the spot she gestured to and began to dig a space large and deep enough for a Chao to fit. It didn't take long. The reptile didn't say anything when he gave the mother her space, backing up as Vanilla let out a choked sob and laid the uncovered Cheese into the ground.

Tears fell as the rabbit cried into her hands. VC couldn't do anything but watch until she nodded in his general direction, taking a couple of steps away from the hole. With a heavy heart, he filled the space back up and smoothed it out, blinking away the moistness in his own eyes at the sounds of sadness beside him.

When Vanilla plucked a yellow flower and tucked it into the loose dirt, he placed a light and supportive hand on her shoulder. "We can stay as long as you like," he suggested softly. When the rabbit's tears were his only answer, he gazed down at the grave.

 _Rest in peace, little guy._

* * *

The sun had just slipped under the horizon when Tails landed the Tornado in front of his home, the moon shining down on the trio of Mobians as they hopped out of the plane. Knuckles felt the Master Emerald inside as he approached the door, TT and Tails at his heels. Getting rid of any paranoia that his gem might have been swiped, the echidna made a fist and knocked on the door, his other hand holding the foreign red Chaos emerald.

After a second, VC opened the wood and stepped aside so they could come in. "Welcome back."

Tails entered after Knuckles, looking around and only seeing Vanilla and Omega sharing a couch. He pursed his lips. "You weren't kidding when you said that no one else is here…"

"Nope." The croc shut the door after TT and plopped down in the comfortable chair in the corner. "No one's been in here 'cept me, Vanilla, and the bot."

Knuckles rose a brow at the drowsy reptile – who probably had just woken up – and then at the worse-for-wear mother. Maybe he was wrong, but was the croc…relieved that they had shown up? The atmosphere in here would have been awkward; Vector would've been quick to fix that (due to the reptile having a crush Knuckles wasn't sure he was supposed to know about). This croc though… The echidna might have just found a difference between the green Mobians.

TT gave the rabbit a long look, being harshly reminded of her twin's death. He shook those gruesome images out of his head as he played with his namesakes. "I-I hope Amy's okay…b-both of them…"

Vanilla smiled genially at the shy kit, seeing him as a more fragile and dependent Tails. She was confident that he would grow stronger with time. "I'm sure that they're fine honey." The rabbit patted the spot between her and the bulky Omega. "Want to sit?"

TT shrunk down and instinctively grabbed his double's arm at the sight of the formidable mech. He had seen the bot before the groups had separated, but he still wanted nothing to do with the machine.

Omega saw this, stating, "DO NOT WORRY. I WILL NOT HARM YOU LITTLE ONE."

Tails, feeling his doppelganger's trembling grip, rubbed the back of his neck and grinned, consoling the mother and robot. "Sorry uh…it's going to take a while for him to warm up to Omega, considering that evil Espio has one working for him and all…"

Vanilla nodded in understanding while Omega replied, "I WISH TO MEET THIS OTHER OMEGA SO I CAN DESTROY HIM LIKE THE INFERIOR COPY HE IS."

Tails sweat dropped. "You're starting to sound like Metal…"

"Metal?" VC asked from his chair. "Are you talkin' about that blue robot from before? Because I can totally see that happening."

While the conversation went on in the background, Knuckles focused on the Master Emerald as he cautiously crept closer to it, waiting for the red gem in his gloved hand to affect the larger jewel in some way. When he was standing right in front of his charge, he glanced between the two gems, waiting and waiting, but nothing happened. Observant violets then zeroed on the cyan Chaos emerald resting on the arm of VC's chair. Nothing was happening with it either.

 _Hm…_ Knuckles hummed to himself, examining the red jewel. Maybe nothing was happening because the Master didn't care about the gem anymore (which Knuckles opposed. It didn't shut down all of the emeralds earlier for no reason) or maybe because the ME didn't _know_ that this individual one was different. It came from a parallel timeline, so there was nothing strange about it. That got Knuckles thinking however. _What's going to happen when the other red Chaos emerald shows up?_

"I HAVE DONE A GREAT JOB IN GUARDING THE MASTER EMERALD FOR YOU."

The guardian's train of thought was disrupted when he realized that Omega's words were aimed at him. His stare was a borderline glare. "Yeah you have. Again, I thank you for it."

"I RETRACT MY STATEMENT ABOUT HELPING YOU WITH THIS JOB HOWEVER."

Believe it or not, but that was on the list for the best news he had heard all day. Knuckles scoffed. "I'm glad. It is _my_ emerald."

"So Knuckles…" The echidna focused on the Mobian who had cut his previous discussion short. Tails was coming over with an uneasy TT on his arm. The independent cub studied the Master Emerald and the red jewel in the guardian's hand. "This Chaos emerald doesn't really affect anything?"

"Right now it doesn't," Knuckles muttered, "It might be a different story when the _other_ red one comes into play though."

Tails furrowed his brow in thought before holding out his hand. "Can I see the emerald? I wanna run some tests on it in the garage."

The echidna hesitated, but handed the item over in the end. "Don't mess anything up, Tails." Which also could mean: _Don't blow anything up, Tails._

The kit just waved him off. "I'll be extra careful!" He then turned to VC who was sinking into the cozy seat. "Hey VC! Can I have that emerald too to compare?"

"Sure kid." The croc sleepily shrugged, tossing over the light blue gem.

Tails caught it and nudged his twin. "Want to go into the garage with me?" When TT very quickly answered an affirmative, the two foxes left the room in a flurry of tails.

When he was left standing in the middle of the floor, Knuckles inwardly cursed incompetent Mobians who couldn't keep their communicators on. He didn't favor staying in the same room as a snoring croc (he better not be picking up Knuckles' double's traits), a vaguely familiar robot, and a subtly grieving mother.

To put it simply, Knuckles wasn't the first person to go to if you wanted a pick-me-up.

"I'm going to sit on the roof for a bit," he told the two awake occupants, heading back to the front door. He was used to seeing the night sky anyway, and with the Master Emerald nearby, he could be as relaxed as he could in this situation while they waited for the others to arrive.

Vanilla simply smiled at him, standing up and moving toward the kitchen. He swore he heard her mutter something about boys and dirty houses. Omega raised one of his metal hands. "DO NOT FALL OFF OF THE ROOF. IT WOULD BE THE MOST EMBARRASSING WAY TO DIE."

"I'll try not to," Knuckles countered before leaving the house. True to his word, the echidna jumped up on the roof, leaning forwards with his elbows on his knees. He let out a heavy sigh. If no one showed up in half an hour, he was going to lose it. The Chaotix and the Amys should've _definitely_ been here by now. The echidna glanced down at the parked plane. When the time was up, he'd get Tails to use the emeralds to track down where that group was.

The guardian looked up at the stars, his mind a whirlwind that couldn't be calmed.

He couldn't tell exactly how long it had been – maybe ten or fifteen minutes or so – when he saw the incoming headlights of a vehicle. _It's about time_ , he thought as he jumped down and landed in the grass. He crossed his arms, looking into the lights, and waited for the others to get out of the jeep so he could find out exactly _why_ they haven't been responding.

When the beams shut off, Knuckles figured out the reason pretty quickly.

His eyes had adjusted to the darkness when the lights went off, and they were immediately glued to Espio's wrapped and bandaged form in the passenger seat. The bruises splattered across his scaled frame were _new_.

The echidna ran over to the jeep, concern instantly overshadowing the anger. "What happened?!"

Vector, who had gotten out of the front seat by then, made a fist and punched his other hand. "I'll TELL you what HAPPENED!" Espio had gotten out of the vehicle with Charmy's help, and the duo were standing by the croc as he told the tale. The purple reptile looked like he had been through hell and back. A growl ripped through Vector's throat. "That OTHER rotten Espio attacked him!"

"Yeah!" Charmy echoed, hovering in the air.

"More than attack," Espio corrected, amber orbs jaded yet sharp. "He tried to kill me."

Amy appeared from behind Vector with Rosy at her heels. CB was nestled in the latter's arms, slowly waking up. Amy gestured to her twin and the bees. "And he knocked us out to get to him!"

Knuckles stood still, processing those words in his brain. When they took hold, the echidna could see red. "He _what?_ " That _damned_ chameleon was going to be missing _a lot_ of teeth when Knuckles was done with him. The guardian then blinked, going over Espio's words again. "He _tried_ to kill you? So you obviously fought back." The chameleon before him nodded. "And he is…"

"Severely wounded," Espio answered with a small frown. "I convinced him to retreat before he killed…"

 _You? Himself?_ Knuckles questioned in his mind even though he had a feeling that both of those endings could fit. The echidna's gaze roamed over his friend's body, seeing how much the other was fixed up. "He did a number on you huh…"

"He is an Espio too." Vector huffed as he examined the reptile's injuries as well. "Unfortunately."

"Yeah." Knuckles breathed out, clenching his fists. He was going to use that other chameleon's face as a punching bag. "When we catch him, he's going to _regret_ messing with all of us!" He then let out a puff of air, calming himself down as much as he could with rage still flowing in his veins. The guardian changed topics. "You guys got the emerald, right?"

"Sure do," Rosy responded as a groggy CB waved it around in his grip. The pinkette looked a bit contrite. "Sorry if you or anyone else tried to contact us. That _killer_ had smashed our communicator…"

 _Of course he did._ Knuckles mentally growled. "Just to add insult to injury." He focused on the Chaotix only. "So are you all staying?"

"Of course!" Vector replied, almost hurt that the echidna had even asked. "We're here to join in on the anti-evil Espio party! And plus, Ms. Vanilla is in there right?" The croc gestured to the home before making his way towards it. "She's hurting! How can I leave her alone knowing that she's like that?"

The reptile was inside before Knuckles could answer.

"Speaking of people in there… Is Sonic back yet?" Amy asked him.

"No," Knuckles grunted out, somehow already knowing that that question would come out of the pinkette's mouth. "That _hedgehog_ hadn't even responded to his communicator." Which could be a very bad sign, now that he thought about it. However, Sonic could take care of himself easy enough…

Worry etched into Amy's features, and Rosy put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Amy! Sonic's had dozens of adventures. He always came back."

Amy's expression relaxed and turned into a warmer one. She nodded. "You're right! My Sonic always comes back! I shouldn't doubt him!"

Rosy chuckled before turning to Knuckles. "TT's in there right?"

Knuckles gestured to a specific part of the house. "Yeah, he's in the garage with Tails." She smiled at him in thanks before grabbing Amy's hand and dragging her inside of the home with CB still in her arms and Charmy buzzing behind them mumbling about revenge and sweets.

The echidna watched them go before glancing over at the only one left. Espio was gazing at the door as well, but Knuckles knew that the chameleon's thoughts were far _far_ away from the house in front of them. "Are you going in?"

Amber orbs trained on him. "Not yet. I want some time to myself, and going in there would deny me that. No offense to anyone inside."

Knuckles understood him completely, however… "Tell me what happened first. I need to know the details."

There was no answer for a moment before the chameleon conceded. As Espio retold the tale, Knuckles was getting angry all over again. The trash had _threatened_ to kill Vector, had almost gouged Espio's _eye_ out, and _he was still out there!_ Knuckles was in no way mad at his reptilian friend, but damnit…they didn't have _any_ clues to where the murderer could be hiding.

The guardian gritted his teeth together. "We are _so_ going to get him."

Espio agreed wholeheartedly. "We are."

Knuckles took the communicator out of his cuff and bobbed his head at the other. "I'll leave you by yourself now." The echidna marched back to the side of his house and hopped up on the roof once more. He watched as Espio moved to the opposite side, carefully squatted down, crossed his legs, and closed his eyes. Knuckles pressed the button on the side of the device, wanting to share this information with the hedgehog he knew that hated the corrupted chameleon the most.

If Shadow would freaking _answer_ , that is.

* * *

The Ultimate Lifeform was positioned a fair distance from the GUN base – a good five blocks – as he waited for Rouge to return from replacing the stolen military jet. He had been standing at this street corner for a while, long enough for Red to lean on a wall and nod off. Granted, the time frame of this echidna falling asleep wasn't the best way to measure time.

Speaking of echidnas…

Shadow glanced down at the communicator hidden in the cuff of his glove. He had debated radioing back in to see what the hell Knuckles had to share, but given how stubborn the guardian was, Shadow doubted he'd get his answers unless he showed up at that doorstep.

The hedgehog's mind drifted off of that and onto the subject of who all was waiting. Knuckles had obviously returned, the location of the Fakers was up in the air, and the pinkettes' group had the easiest emerald to get. They had to be back. And if it was true that the Chaotix were coming as well…

Shadow was definitely going to have to resist the powerful urge to smash that purple chameleon's face into the nearest brick wall.

"I hope that I didn't keep you two waiting for too long."

Ruby orbs snapped over to an approaching Rouge, the bat giving him a single wave. Shadow just faced her. "I'm assuming that you weren't as lucky when returning as you were when stealing it."

She gave him a sly grin. "Well, thieves aren't exactly well-known for only _borrowing_ things." Rouge put a hand on her hip. "The Commander gave me a harsh reprimand and more paperwork to do that won't get done before sending me on my way."

"…That's it?" Red's tired voice cut in, the echidna himself being roused by the bat's entrance. He yawned and stretched, popping his back before pushing away from the wall he had been leaning on. "You weren't kidding about them not firing you."

"I wasn't kidding about my precious talents," Rouge replied smugly with a wink.

Red just sighed.

Shadow began to pull on one of the two emeralds hidden in his quills. "Now that's done, let's go see what the guardian wants to say. Chaos Control."

In a bright flash of light, the trio disappeared from the streets of Station Square and reappeared in that same ball of energy in the hedgehog's/fox's front yard. They barely had a second to regather themselves before a loud voice rung out:

"It's about _time_ you came back!"

Shadow looked over to see Knuckles stomping his way toward the small group, a frown prominent on his muzzle. "You know that we went to go find the furthest Chaos emeralds," the Ultimate Lifeform uttered somewhat slowly because clearly Knuckles had forgotten about that bit of information.

"He knows." Rouge smirked. "He's still mad about the communicator situation and he wants to find something to yell about."

The guardian stopped in front of her and pointed a finger at the bat. "Hush it, bat-girl! You're probably the reason for anybody not replying!"

Rouge held up her hands innocently. "Don't be so quick in pointing fingers hon, _especially_ since I'm the only one who isn't at fault."

Sharp violets glanced between Shadow and Red, lingering on the latter. "Why am I not surprised," he grunted out. Red was gazing up at the stars, not caring about the echidna currently berating him. "But anyway, you all are here now, so let's move on."

"Ooo… You're all serious now Knuckie," Rouge teased, "It's a nice change sugar."

A tick mark formed on the guardian's forehead, but he didn't comment on that statement. "Moving _on_." He focused on Shadow, and said hedgehog knew that something was up by the look in his eyes. Those irises were blazing with hate that wasn't aimed towards him. "There was a run-in with _your_ chameleon today."

Shadow didn't bother correcting the other on the 'your' part. His body was growing tense. "What do you mean?"

"What I _mean_ is that the evil Espio had tried to kill _ours._ "

"…You're not joking…" Red lowly commented.

Knuckles scowled at him. "Why would you _think_ that I was?"

Shadow wasn't hearing them. He was too busy trying to keep his complete and utter _fury_ under control. He felt Rouge's hand on her shoulder, but he didn't react to the touch. He was imagining wrapping his hands around that chameleon's neck and _twisting_. From the tone of the echidna's words, Shadow found it safe to assume that the Chaotix Espio hadn't exactly won that fight.

The Ultimate Lifeform furrowed his brow, rage marginally suppressed by confusion.

Why didn't he win? The corrupted chameleon had a broken arm.

"Where is he?" Shadow demanded.

"Back with Eggman no doubt," Knuckles glowered, "That little-"

"Not him." Shadow corrected, making the echidna blink. "Where's the detective Espio?"

"Oh." The guardian bobbed his head in the direction of the home, and the trio shifted their gazes to the meditating purple chameleon. With the bandages and bruises all over the reptile's body, it was safe to say that the echidna wasn't lying.

The urge to attack was strong as Shadow made his way over to the ninja, stopping right in front of the sitting Mobian. The Ultimate Lifeform crossed his arms and looked down at the wrapped up detective.

"Why in the _hell_ did you lose?"

Amber eyes opened, and Shadow's frown unconsciously deepened at the familiar sight. Espio's answer was straight forward. "I didn't lose. It was more like a tie. We both ended up nearly in the same condition."

"Why?" Shadow repeated again, the beginnings of a growl rumbling in his throat. That chameleon's voice just grated on his nerves, and it wasn't even this Espio's fault. "He had a _broken_ arm damnit! How could you not-"

"Broken arm?" Espio cocked his head up at him, befuddled. "He didn't have a broken arm. If he had, then he would be in jail rotting right now, and I wouldn't have been hurt how I was."

Shadow didn't know what to make of his information. "But earlier… There is no way he could have healed that quickly." He reverted to his thoughts. _How the hell? The chameleon had a broken arm! If it wasn't when Espio fought him…then how in the hell did he heal in that little time frame? The only possible explanation is Chaos healing, but that little shit doesn't…_

Shadow's eyes widened before narrowing dangerously. _But what if he does…_

Penumbra was still missing, true, but that didn't mean that he was _lost._

"Penny for your thoughts, hon?" Rouge asked from behind him, her and the echidnas had been listening into the duo's conversation (and secretly waiting to jump in if Shadow had a random bout of violence). "Have any idea how the other Espio fixed his arm up?"

The striped hedgehog's fists were clenched. "He might have Penumbra."

Red summed up everyone's thoughts. "Damn."

"And if he had voluntarily healed up that trash…" Knuckles shook his head, extremely bothered. "This is bad."

"Penumbra is the other version of you, correct?" Espio asked, holding up a hand for Knuckles to grab. The echidna did so, helping the ninja off the ground. When Shadow nodded at his question, he continued, "Then should he know not to-"

"He's extremely malleable," Shadow grunted, hating this turn of events. "Who knows what that chameleon had planted inside of his head."

Rouge pursed her lips. "Do you think that he will make an appearance tomorrow?"

"I don't know," the hedgehog growled. "There's a reason that Eggman and Espio kept him a secret. Metal Sonic didn't tell Faker and me about him."

"We still don't know for sure though," Red brought up, scratching his cheek. "There could have been another way that Espio fixed himself."

"Not in a way that made his arm completely usable." Shadow glanced at a silently listening Espio (he had thought about healing the chameleon, but the ninja wasn't exactly asking to be). "Are you sure-"

He cut himself off when Knuckles suddenly whipped his head toward the house. His body was stock-still. "There's something wrong with the Master Emerald."

Concern filled Rouge's features. "Wait, what do you mean?"

Shadow was about to ask as well, but then he felt more empty than he did just a second ago. Breath hitching, the hedgehog pulled out the red and purple emeralds from his quills. They were powered down. Surprised rubies then focused on Red who was pulling the yellow gem out of his dreads, that jewel dull and lifeless as well.

"Here we go again…" Red sighed out.

"Damnit!" Knuckles cursed before running into the home, Shadow right behind him.

Inside, the ME was shining and perfect like it usually was, but there were a multitude of eyes on it when the group burst in.

"What happened?" Knuckles barked.

Amy, who was sitting in between Vanilla and Omega on the couch, pointed at the massive jewel. "It shut down or something for a second! Then it came back on!"

"Just like on Angel Island…" the echidna muttered, jogging toward his charge to make sure it was completely alright.

"Is something wrong with it?" The mother rabbit questioned, her chocolate orbs shifting from an injured Espio (they had wavered a bit before solidifying. Shadow couldn't blame her) to Knuckles.

"Hopefully not!" Rouge flew over and worriedly stroked the gem, Knuckles too busy to swat her away.

"I DO NOT THINK STROKING IT ROUGE WILL FIX THE PROBLEM." Rouge ignored Omega's statement.

"The Chaos emeralds are black again!" CB commented from the floor, waving the dark blue one in the air.

Charmy grabbed it and examined it. "This is so weird!"

VC slumped in his chair. "Great! This is just _wonderful!_ Can nothing go right?"

"With the Chaos emeralds involved," Vector started, leaning against said chair with his arms crossed, "you NEVER know what might happen."

Right after his words were uttered, the garage door burst open with Tails entering the living room with a panicked expression on his face. He was holding onto the dull cyan and foreign red emerald. "It wasn't my fault, I swear! I didn't do anything!"

"It's true!" Rosy backed up him up as she closed the door behind her and TT. "He wasn't doing anything!"

Shadow saw the duplicate ruby emerald in the fox's hand before glancing down at his own. "We know you didn't," he placated the cub. Shadow stared at the ME. "The Master Emerald hates the two red emerald together."

"W-What do we d-do now?" TT inquired, looking at Shadow and avoiding the purple chameleon beside the Ultimate Lifeform. The timid fox stepped closer to his sister just in case. Espio saw this and went to go stand in the nearest corner, knowing that his presence would be troubling for some and wanting to be less of a threat to them.

Knuckles looked like he disliked what he was about to say next. "I have to force it to turn them back on…again." The room instantly went quiet when the guardian held up his gloved hands and closed his eyes. His lips moved as he began to mutter something inaudibly. As time went on however, he began to get more frustrated. It was taking longer than it did the first time he spoke to the emerald.

Shadow was aware of this as well. Scarlets cut over to Red who was patiently staring at the powerful jewel. He eventually caught the echidna's eye and gestured to the ME when he did so. Red was about to object, but the heated glare sent made him change his mind.

Red approached the Master Emerald and held his hands out as well. He was extremely rusty, but maybe he could still do something. He closed his eyes and started muttering as well.

Knuckles heard this and was tempted to chew the other out for butting in on _his_ job, but he needed to focus.

The additional help seemed to do the trick, because the Chaos emeralds flickered back on a moment after Red offered his assistance.

Tails let out a relived sigh, examining the two shining gems in his hands. "That almost was-" his voice then went up an octave when their brilliance dulled, half powered. "-bad?"

Rouge gasped, whirling on her red furred companion. "Knuckles?"

Said echidna was already on it, holding his hands out one more time. However, when he made contact with the emerald, the ME wasn't budging. This was different from before. Earlier, progress was extremely slow until Red jumped in. It had been just resisting. Now however…it was a brick wall, refusing to budge.

The echidna's arms fell to his sides. "I can't do anything…" he reluctantly said.

Shadow's pulse was erratic as he inspected the red gem in his hand, knowing that it and its twin were the troublemakers here. This situation could be worse; the emeralds could have been _completely_ shut down. However…having them at only half power was worrying as well. Could he still use them without any ill effects?

He decided to try it out. "Chaos Control."

He found out his answer when he was suddenly upside down against the opposite wall, his neck supporting his weight.

No, no he couldn't.

* * *

Sonic smiled as he zipped back and forth to avoid the numerous trees he was traveling through, almost back home. It'll only take a minute if he continued at the speed he was going, and he had to if he didn't want his irate double catching him.

The hero laughed, enjoying this game of keep-away with his twin. It was fun especially because it seemed like they had the same top speed. He was always _just_ out of the reach of Boom, and it was hilarious to hear how frustrated he would get. It was like taunting a constantly grumpy Shadow.

The blue speedster glanced over to Mephiles in his shadow and gave the darker 'hog a thumbs up, snickering when the other rolled his eyes at him. The striped hedgie seemed to be enjoying this as well, which was good.

Sonic peered over his shoulder to stick out his tongue at his steaming doppelganger who was not a yard behind him. It had been this close ever since Grand Metropolis. Sonic had spent a long while in there going through any and every alley he could to shake off Boom, but he soon realized that it was a rush knowing that one mistake could end their little game.

The hero turned back forward just in time to duck under a low hanging branch, the glowing white Chaos emerald held tight to his body. His chuckles that echoed in the darkness immediately stopped when the gem stopped acting like a natural flashlight.

"What the…?" Sonic murmured, holding the dim jewel to his face. He could only do so for a millisecond before he was harshly tackled from behind, sending both him and this twin tumbling to the ground.

After a couple of bumpy rolls, Boom ended up on top of him, panting heavily. "Fucking _finally!_ " He ripped the emerald out of a shocked Sonic's hands and held it up in victory. "Suck it, jackass! I finally caught…" He finally noticed that the gem wasn't shining like it was supposed to. Boom blinked. "The fuck?"

Sonic pushed his twin off of him to sit up. The hero reached into his quills to pull out the green emerald hiding in there. It was in the same condition as the white one. Mephiles fully materialized himself in a squatting position, nervously studying the jewel. When he gave Sonic a questioning look, the speedster shrugged. "I have _no_ idea why this is happening again…"

"Again?" Boom glared at his nearly black emerald before sending the heat Sonic's way. "This shit has happened _before?_ "

"Yeah." Sonic rubbed his neck as he stood back up. He dusted some dirt off of his body. "It was before you woke up. We used the Master Emerald to fix them… Why the heck did they drain again?"

Boom snarled, jabbing a finger in Sonic's chest, green orbs glinting. "I _swear_ if any of your damned _friends_ caused this!"

Sonic pushed him away. "Hey, it doesn't have to be anyone's fault, alright?" He tapped his chin, tossing the dull green item up and down. "The big rock shut them all down in the first place, so it must've did it again. It's at my house right now where the others are probably waiting."

Boom huffed, the gentle wind ruffing his cobalt quills. "So it _could_ be their fault."

"I didn't say that! I should buy you a trampoline pal, since you like jumpin' to conclusions so much." Sonic didn't pay attention to the responding snarl. He looked over at Mephiles and gestured to his shadow. "Better jump in Mephy because I'm ready to…" The hero trailed of when the green emerald flickered back on only to shine with less luminescence than before. "Okay, now I'm really confused…"

"They aren't fully powered…" Boom muttered before stomping the ground. "Just what the _hell_ is going on over there?!"

Sonic put one foot forward. "There's only one way to find out!" When Mephy attached himself to his shade, the hero shot forward and it wasn't long before two blue streaks ran side by side to their destination.

When the calmer speedster knocked on the front door, he was surprised by two things: to hear laughter when the wood cracked open, and to see a banged up Espio standing in the doorframe.

Sonic's guard was up for a nanosecond until he noticed that the reptile had two eyes. He whistled lowly. However, before he could ask anything, there was a snarl from behind him. Sonic, along with Mephiles, stepped in front of Boom to prevent him from lunging. "Whoa! Calm down other me! This is this world's Espio! The good one!" The flame was still there in those emerald eyes, but Boom decreased the pressure, gaze never leaving Espio. Sonic relaxed his own muscles. "Jeez…Sorry about that Es, just ignore my pal here. So what happened?"

Espio gave the hostile hedgehog a once over before answering Sonic's question, amber orbs swiveling to the hero, passing by a fretting Mephiles. "Espio tried to kill me at the lake the emerald was in. It ended up in a tie," he muttered the last part.

"Chaos…" Sonic breathed out. Mephy let silently gasped, and Boom narrowed his eyes. The hero then gave the chameleon a small smile. "Glad that you taught him a good thing or two." Sonic tilted his head a bit, thinking about the evil Espio's appearance on Angel Island. "But wait…wasn't his arm…?"

Espio sighed. "Shadow said that the other me may have Penumbra."

"Well that's _fucking fantastic._ " Boom snapped out while glaring at the chameleon like _he_ was the one who was to blame. "The next thing you all will be tellin' me is that the shitstain had jacked the damned _president._ "

" **I wouldn't be surprised…"** Mephiles signed at him, and Espio rose an interested brow.

"Welp, I'll just add that to the long list of 'Things to worry about'." Sonic put a hand on his hip, holding the emerald with his other. "Right under the messed up emeralds. Let's go see what that's all about."

Espio backed up to let the trio in. Boom didn't let up on his glare when he passed the chameleon. "I'm watching you," he threatened.

"There's nothing to watch," Espio retorted smoothly.

Boom just bared his teeth before focusing on the commotion in front of him. The room was packed with Mobians who were grinning, chuckling, or full out laughing at Shadow standing to the side, said hedgehog glaring at everyone. Boom then froze when he saw the rabbit sitting on the couch, tired-looking but smiling anyway. He couldn't explain the emotions running through him. He was mad at her familiar form, guilty because he didn't save the one with her face, and…empathetic...for her because her child was missing.

He made himself ignore her so he could keep his emotions in check.

"Hey I wanna know the joke! I missed it!" Sonic said, gaining the attention of the room.

Shadow glared at Sonic. "It was _nothing_ , Faker."

"Mephy!" CB called, zooming over to the shadow 'hog. "You guys are back!" He plopped down on the quilled one's head.

"Yeah…" Rosy eyed Boom as she positioned herself slightly in front of TT. Beside her, Tails' namesakes were twitching somewhat nervously. Sharp jades narrowed at the extra speedster. " _All_ of you are back."

Boom wasn't in the mood for any of it. "Listen up _bitch_. Shut the eff up before I come over there and-"

"Excuse me, young man." Boom blinked when Vanilla unexpectedly stood up and looked at him. All of the laughter had stopped. The rabbit had a stern expression on her face that made the hedgehog a bit uncomfortable. She put her hands on her hips, and Boom couldn't help but feel like child. "That type of language should not be used to ridicule your friends."

"But she's not my-"

"Or any young ladies," she continued, pointing at the ground. "Now, I want you to sit down and think about what you've said." Blue ears folded back, but Boom didn't move…for a moment. When it didn't seem like the mother would back down, the hedgehog scowled before sitting on the floor, glaring at Vanilla's feet. The rabbit smiled. "There you go, sweetie." She returned to her spot on the sofa.

Vector could barely hold in his mirth. "He just got schooled," he said lowly so only his twin could hear.

VC grinned. "Definitely."

"So uh…" Sonic began, pausing to swallow the laughs threatening to spill out of his mouth. "Let's start on the topic of emeralds." He gestured to the darkened green one in his hand. "What happened to them?"

"The Master Emerald _really_ doesn't like the eighth red emerald," Knuckles answered, taking his eyes off the sulking speedster on the floor. "So to control the extra energy, the ME only let the emeralds contain half of their power. It's not letting me fix it neither."

Sonic tapped his foot in thought. "So will the plan still work with these? Can we go Super with them?"

"I'm thinking yes. I can still Chaos Control." Shadow sent daggers over to Rouge when she giggled. "But we'll have to be careful."

"We can try it out right now…"

"I wouldn't do that Sonic!" Tails stopped his big brother, raising a hand. "They'd go flying when you're done, and my tracker wouldn't work the best because of the new energy output!"

Sonic frowned. "You gotta point there…"

There was a pregnant pause until Red yawned. "So what do we do now?"

"We have all of the emeralds, so all we can do now is wait for tomorrow," Shadow suggested.

There was a growl from the floor. "That's it? We call it a fu-" Boom didn't even see Vanilla's look; he _felt_ it. "-freakin' night? Leave the stupid emeralds the way they are?!"

"Are _you_ going to do something about them then?" Knuckles countered, and for once, Boom didn't have a comeback. "I thought so."

There was another beat of silence before Vanilla got up and smoothed out the ruffles in her dress. "I believe it's time for me to say goodnight." She smiled gratefully over to Sonic and then Tails. "Thank you for letting me stay here. It…really helped. I'm well enough to return home…" She turned toward the door. "I am truly grateful, you kind souls."

Amy shot up from her spot and bounded over to the rabbit's side. "I can't let you walk alone!" She beamed at the mother, grabbing her hand. "And plus, staying in an empty house like that will only make you worry more. Can I spend the night?"

Vanilla nodded, and it was clear that she was relieved. "Of course you can sweetie."

"And I can't let you two ladies roam the night unprotected!" Vector added, approaching the two females. "I will accompany you two and guard the home until the morning! Just in case of any sneak attacks…"

The rabbit laughed while Amy rolled her eyes. "You can come too, honey," the former said.

Vector nodded. "Alright!" He followed the mother and pinkette until he was the last one out. The croc glanced over to Espio leaning against the wall. "I'll let you hold down the fort for tonight, Es!"

"It's not really different from any other nights…" Espio mumbled under his breath when the green reptile disappeared. The chameleon then pushed off the dry-wall. "I think we should follow their lead. Charmy, it's time to go."

"Aw, but I'm not tired yet!" The bee opposed. At the flat stare he received, Charmy changed tactics. "Can my twin spend the night? Canhecanhecanhe?"

Espio let out a puff of air. "…If he wants."

"Yeah!" Charmy held out a hand for CB to clap; he did, them both giggling.

VC stood up out of his chair, stretching. "You don't mind if I come, do you?"

The chameleon shook his head. "Not at all. _You_ just realize that there will be two Charmy's in the same house."

The croc chuckled. "Duly noted."

"Can we come too?" Rosy asked, fingers intertwined with TT's. She glanced down at her brother for permission, and the fox nodded after some hesitation. "I gotta show my little sib here that you're not a bad guy, the complete opposite!"

"Yay! The more the merrier!" Charmy cheered. "Sleepover time!"

As long as Espio got his rest, he didn't care how many people came over. He walked out of the door, followed by the bees, VC, TT, and Rose, the pinkette waving at the ones left before she too exited.

Knuckles watched them leave before looking over the ME. "I'm going back to Angel Island and am taking the Master Emerald with me. It's where it belongs." The guardian gestured to the only kit left in the room. "Come on Tails, take me up there."

"Omega's going with you."

The echidna's temper spiked at Shadow's words. Knuckles whirled on him. "He is _not_ going up there with me! It's _my_ island. No one else's!"

The Ultimate Lifeform crossed his arms. "I'm not sending him up there to take it over. He's going so Espio can't use the same trick on you again." Shadow glanced over at Red. "He's going too for extra power."

Red rose a brow at him. "And when did I agree to that? I don't want to-" At the hedgehog's piercing look, the tired echidna just groaned in defeat. "Alright…"

But Knuckles wasn't giving in that easily. "I can take care of the emerald by myself! I've done it for _years!_ " He turned to a blue hedgehog. "Sonic! Back me up here!"

The cobalt hero shrugged and gave him a sheepish smile. "Shads is right Knux." At the flash of hurt on the guardian's face, Sonic quickly explained. "Just think about it! If the evil Espio decides to show up there, it's good to have some back up! That's all!"

"No one's doubting you Knuckie." Rouge consoled, "We just don't want that precious gem gone sooner than we expect it to be."

Knuckles muttered angrily to himself, reverting to his grump mode. He picked up the Master Emerald and headed toward the front door, going to place the gem in the backseat of the plane.

"This is going to be rough…" Red sighed as he followed his twin, waving a lazy hand over his shoulder after handing Sonic the yellow emerald. "See you tomorrow."

Scarlets trained on Omega when the mammal disappeared. "You don't mind going, do you?"

"NO. I AM POSITIVE THAT I WILL BE KEPT ENTERTAINED BY THE TWO ECHIDNAS BICKERING." The floor marginally shook with each step Omega took.

However, before he could leave, Shadow called out to him. "Take a Chaos emerald. Secure it inside you. We're not keeping all of the emeralds in the same place."

"THAT IS A SMART IDEA." The robot grabbed the indigo gem laying on the floor and placed it into his internal storage space. "I AM THE BEST PROTECTION FOR THIS JEWEL. SO DO NOT WORRY."

As he went, Tails turned to Sonic and gave him a thumbs up. "I'll be back in a bit!" His namesakes revved up, and he was out of the home, almost beating Omega to the door.

"And then there were five…" Rouge observed, counting the ones left. She fluttered her wings, taking flight. "Well, I'm not offering any space for any of you, but…" The bat leaned and swiped the purple gem from Shadow's hands. "I have _plenty_ of room for this sick child."

Shadow wasn't going to fight it, knowing that getting a jewel from her hands was near impossible. "Take care of it, Rouge."

She winked. "You know I will, sugar. Later boys!" And then she was gone as well.

Sonic scanned the stragglers. He knew that Shadow would go back to his own place to rest up for tomorrow, but Mephy he knew didn't have anywhere to stay, especially since he didn't volunteer to go with Espio. Green orbs then gazed over at Boom, who had moved to lean against a wall as soon as Vanilla left (he _really_ should've been recording the mom's and his twin's little interaction).

"It's an open house guys," Sonic offered, twirling the green emerald around on his finger. He grinned. "We've got plenty of space here. The couch I hear is _really_ comfortable."

Mephy's expression brightened, but Boom scoffed. "Tch. As _if._ I've spent too much of today with you as is, no need to add _night_ too." He tucked the white emerald in his quills before zipping over to the red Chaos emerald Tails had left on the couch. "It doesn't matter if there's eight of them, or if they're messed up, this shit's still _mine._ "

A gust of wind signified his departure. Shadow felt that it was no use chasing the speedster down.

" _Jeez_ he's such a pain sometimes…" Sonic commented with the shake of a head. Mephiles nodded, and Shadow couldn't refute that claim. The hero juggled the yellow and green emeralds in his grip. "What a day, huh?"

 _You can say that again._ Mephiles inwardly thought, going over to sit on the sofa he was claiming for the night. He took hold of the cyan jewel there, twisting it in his hands.

"And I get the feeling that tomorrow is going to be even worse." Shadow grunted. He had no idea how the trade-off was going to go, and that put him on edge.

"How could it be worse?" Sonic asked genuinely, halting his circus act. "We're getting our friends back! At the hefty price of one Master Emerald, but we're gonna get the rock back too! Y'know, if the Chaos emeralds don't act all wonky."

The Ultimate Lifeform stared at the hero for a swift moment – he had forgotten how… _positive_ his rival was – before uttering, "I'm going now." He approached Mephiles and held up an empty palm. Mephy understood, placing the cyan emerald in his hold. Shadow held his gaze before snorting. "I never thought I would see the day that you'd stay over at Faker's."

 _He has to be talking about the other me,_ Mephiles deduced.

Shadow raised his voice so that Sonic could hear as well. "Night, Faker."

Sonic saluted him off. "Goodnight Shads! Sweet dreams!"

Shadow disregarded the words as he attempted to Chaos Control again.

Let's just say, Sonic quickly figured out what that joke was from earlier.

* * *

"So how are you liking the park, Charmy?" A white hedgehog asked, crunching on the cone of his half-eaten ice cream.

A young bee was sitting at the other side of the table the duo had decided to occupy, gleefully eating some cotton candy. "It's so fun!" he answered with a bright smile, "Thanks Silver!"

Said white furred Mobian laughed. "I told you that I'd take you at the end of the week." He gestured around them to all of the rides, food stands, and games positioned everywhere. "And here we are!"

The two friends watched as other companions and families enjoyed themselves as they walked around the large amusement park, having the time of their lives. Silver finished his chilly dessert the same time Charmy ate the last of his fluffy candy, throwing the stick in the nearest trashcan.

They both stood up from their table and searched the surrounding area. "What are we gonna do next?" Silver curiously looked over at the young insect.

Charmy hovered in the air and immediately answered, "Let's go on more rides!"

Silver chuckled. "Didn't we get on every rollercoaster already?"

The bee vehemently shook his head. "I don't think so…" He rose up higher in the air and pointed to something in the distance. "Look! Look! No we didn't! There's a _whoooole_ bunch of rides over there that we haven't ridden yet!"

The psychic put a hand over his eyes to shade them as he followed Charmy's finger. "Seriously? Cool! I thought we would have to go home!" Silver nudged the kid. "Well then, let's g-" He was cut off by a familiar chime coming from his quills.

Charmy lowered himself and peered at the other's head. "Hey, I think that's your phone."

"Yeah, I hear it." Silver carefully reached into his white quills and pulled out his ringing device. "Huh…I wonder who it is…" He answered it. "Hello?"

" _Hey…"_

Even though it was hard to hear the voice over the consistent noises of the park, Silver immediately recognized it. "Oh! Hey Amy! How's it going?" It was great hearing from her again; it's been a long time since he last talked to her.

" _I'm fine. I know that we haven't talked in a while, but I need to cut to the chase. I need your help."_

Charmy inquisitively glanced at Silver, and the hedgehog mouthed, "My friend Amy. Remember when I talked about her?" The bee furrowed his brow in thought before nodding. Silver returned his attention to the phone. "For what?" He snickered. "Do you want me to come down there and tell you which dress you look better in? Because I'd rather not." The insect chuckled, and Silver smiled at his little joke.

A loud group of people then decided to walk by. _"I…wish…that simple. I…you…to help…"_

The psychic tried to block out the noise, but it was for naught. "Wait a minute, I can't hear you. Let me go somewhere quiet." He scanned the area until he located the restroom. _That's the perfect place as any,_ he mused before running over there.

"Where are you going?" Charmy called from behind him.

"To the bathroom!" he shouted back, "Just don't get on any rides without me!"

Silver entered the empty bathroom, and as soon as the door closed, the booming voices almost became nonexistent. "That's better." The hedgehog went over to a mirror and fixed a quill that was out of place. "Can you repeat what you said, Amy?"

There was silence on the other line.

The ghost of a frown grew on Silver's muzzle. "Amy? You there?" When there was no response, the psychic took the phone off his ear and looked at the screen only to find that Amy had hung up on him. "Okay…" Silver ignored his rapidly beating heart as he dialed her back. There was nothing wrong with her. She had ended the call on accident. Nothing was happening to her. When he was about to put the phone back up to his ear, it died.

Silver stared at his device before he clenched it in slight anger. Now he wouldn't know what Amy wanted until-

The hedgehog loudly gasped when the lights went out, blanketing him in complete darkness. Silver's breath hitched as he waited to his eyes to readjust, but they never did. "Ch-Charmy? Is this some kind of prank? It's not funny!" he shouted into the void.

It was deathly silent. There wasn't even an echo.

Before he full-out panicked, Silver put his hands together and attempted to make a light. That would push all of his anxiety and fears away. The darkness wouldn't touch him anymore.

When his powers didn't work, the psychic went into a terrified frenzy. He dropped his phone and went over where the door of the restroom was supposed to be only to meet empty space. His panting was loud and harsh, fueled by the unknown that had wrapped around him.

Quick footsteps soon accompanied his heavy breaths, Silver running in a single direction, wanting to come across a wall, a door, _something_. His heartbeats were as piercing as his steps. Every single pound was audible to his ears.

Silver ran until he couldn't anymore. Tears welled up in his eyes when he collapsed on the ground, trying to catch his forever lost breath. No one could help him. He was _alone._

That was until the whispers started.

"…trapped…"

"Who's there?" Silver yelled, propping himself up on his trembling arms, damp yellow orbs snapped from left to right. "Answer me!"

"…helpless…"

Silver yelped when the disembodied voice breathed in his left ear, scrambling up on his exhausted legs and backing away from wherever he thought it came from. "Sh-Show yourself o-or leave me alone!" _Please…please leave me alone._

"…worthless…"

The hedgehog covered his ears when the voice targeted his right appendage, trembles racking his whole frame "G-Go away!"

"…i just want to help…"

Silver cried out when the words echoed around in his mind. Unescapable. He began to run again, hoping to leave the voice behind. He was stumbling over his own feet, tears mixing in with the sweat as they dipped down his face.

"…so let me kill you…"

"S-Stay away!" The hedgehog yelled at the top of his burning lungs, running blindly in the desolate darkness, feeling like he wasn't going anywhere at all. This world was dark and empty and made for no other reason but to torture him.

Silver grunted when he crashed into something, falling backwards when the object he had ran into didn't give. The psychic hissed in pain until his golden orbs drifted up to see what was in front of him. He whimpered at the sight of a floating smile that was lined in razor sharp teeth meant for nothing but tearing.

The psychic backed up clumsily using his hands and feet when the twisted smile floated closer. He didn't get far before something invisible painfully grabbed his chest hair, yanking him back up to his feet. The grip didn't loosen, and Silver was too horrified by the teeth a couple of inches away from his face to try to fight the hold.

Silver then attempted to shrink into himself when bright red eyes blinked open, shining in the shadows. He could help but to stare in terror as the darkness itself melted into those floating orbs, swirling around and diming them until they were the color of cold thick blood without the light of life to make it warm.

They were predatory…hungry…and they were looking right at _him._

"…told you to stop moving…"

Unexpectedly, the voice came from behind him. Silver shouted in surprise when the back of his knees were kicked in, and he was sent violently to the floor, landing hard. His chest hair had been freed, but his arms were now wrenched around his back and held there. Silver struggled, but the grip was impossibly tight, and every movement sent shocks of pain throughout his system.

"…you can fight all you want…"

Those stained teeth parted to allow a long rough tongue to run over them, a strand of drool stringing to the ground.

"…but this is the end…"

The hedgehog couldn't say anything, dread drying his mouth. He couldn't talk around the cotton. The only answer he could get out was labored wheezing, the result of him hyperventilating.

"… _AtTacK_ …"

Silver screamed when an invisible clawed hand plunged into his chest and wrapped its cold fingers around the pulsing organ there…squeezing…squeezing…and squeezing…

Until it exploded.

Silver's throat was raw when he woke up, only to be surrounded by more unyielding darkness. His body was tense and shaking as he waited for the pain he knew was going to come. It didn't matter if it was in the form of another nightmare, or from a living, breathing source. The hedgehog himself didn't know what was next. He didn't even know if he was truly awake.

Silver couldn't decide what was worse: his nightmares or this hellish reality.

It was a difficult choice to make...considering it was hard to tell the difference anymore.

* * *

 **How'd you guys like that little throwback? Y'know…before it went bad…**

 **Next chapter…time to trade!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer- I don't own.**

 **A/N- Whew…it's been a while, hasn't it? I'm** _ **so**_ **sorry guys.**

 **College freshman=no time.**

 **Sigh…I've got some bad news. Updates are gonna be sporadic and slower, I mean, I'll try not to have them be a billion years apart, but you know…education. But don't worry! It** _ **will**_ **be updated! Just...expect delays.**

 **Anyway, you've waited long enough! Read on!**

 **Chapter 27- Sorry**

Shadow took a slight step forward to steady himself before he got the chance to be acquainted with the unforgiving ground. The striped hedgehog straightened back up and frowned at the red emerald held in his hand, the glow not as strong as it needed to be. This and the cyan emerald stuck in his quills had not improved their condition since yesterday. They still weren't at full-power.

The Ultimate Lifeform had spent some of the night and the majority of the day trying to adjust to the different energy level. It was more challenging than he had thought, even though he really couldn't be surprised. Shadow now could teleport without crashing up against a wall or a nearby tree, but his Chaos Control still wasn't perfect and he had to put more focus into the action if he didn't want to mess up. Who knew what was going to happen if and when they went Super…

Shadow tightened his fingers around the jewel in his hand, its dull glow making his teeth clench. He was angry. Angry at this whole situation. Evil Espio just being who he was, Cream being kidnapped, Silver and Rogue being taken hostage, and the Chaos Emeralds being drained of their energy… And what bothered Shadow was that he couldn't even _blame_ the rotten chameleon for the last problem.

The extra jewel and that annoying horned reptile wouldn't even had _been_ here if Shadow hadn't been so _careless_ all those days ago. Because of that robot that he had _blindly_ ignored, because of that stealthy piece of damn scrap metal…

Hardened rubies drifted off the emerald in front of them and trained themselves on the yard filled with Mobians who were oblivious to his arrival. It was understandable, since Shadow was shaded in the trees just out of sight.

Everybody was there, even Vanilla. The motherly rabbit had made herself comfortable on a worn-out blanket that was spread over the green grass. She was peacefully sitting there, paying attention as Amy spoke to her about something or another. Along with the pinkette, Vector, Rosy and TT were settled down beside the elder as well. The former two were into the conversation, but the shy fox kept on giving Omega wary glances.

Said robot was standing by the Master Emerald, observing and apparently attempting to keep order as Knuckles fought to keep Rouge enough distance away from the recently finicky emerald. It was clear that the echidna was fighting on the losing side.

VC was leaning against the house, quietly chuckling at the two jewel collectors while Red napped beside him, arms crossed and head drooped. Espio sat on the ground near the echidna's feet, meditating and seemingly ignoring everything around him, which was a feat in itself just because of the twin bees flying around and making as much noise as they possibly could.

Though, Shadow could see the occasional annoyed twitch of the chameleon's brow. It could be because of the insects, or because of the heated glare the Ultimate Lifeform _knew_ the purple reptile had to feel. Shadow himself had cleared his head and mentally separated this world's Espio from the evil one – there was no need for displaced hostility – however, it seemed like Sonic's double was still filled to the brim with suspicion and hate. That blue speedster was leaning against a wall on the more unpopulated side of the yard, glaring poison at the ninja.

For once, Shadow couldn't actually blame him, but that Faker would learn who the real target was soon enough.

The original Faker was leaning against the Tornado, smiling while Tails pointed to different parts of his plane and explaining them to a surprisingly interested Mephiles. Although Sonic seemed relaxed, Shadow could see the occasional flicker of emerald irises over to the hero's twin, like he was ready to take action if anything spontaneously occurred.

Shadow guessed that getting ambushed didn't end up with the worst result, but still, _damn_ his latent imagination.

"Heya Shads!"

The Ultimate Lifeform was thrown out of his musings when Sonic's familiar voice called him out. He blinked and focused on the waving speedster, smiling like nothing was wrong with the world. Shadow ambled out of the shade and into the sun, catching the attention of all around.

When he approached, everyone suddenly became alert and quiet, the atmosphere radiating with nervousness and excitement for what was to come.

Sonic pushed off the plane and walked up to him. "It's 'bout time you showed up! Where have you been all day?"

Shadow gestured to the emerald held in his palm. "Practicing." He glared in the general direction of a barely muffled chuckle.

The smile on the hero's muzzle morphed into an amused grin that the striped hedgie didn't appreciate. Sonic put a hand on his hip. "Well that's good, can't have the Chaos emeralds acting too wonky, ya know? But I'm glad you're here, cuz I was startin' to think that you forgot what time the whole thing was goin' down!"

Shadow crossed his arms and deadpanned. "Like I'd be late for this, Faker."

Sonic shrugged. "Hey, I'm just sayin' that I thought my twin over there would be the last one here." Out of the corner of his eye, Shadow saw said speedster redirect his venomous stare toward his doppelganger. "He came maybe five minutes ago? But anyway!" Sonic clapped his hands. "Since you're here, it's time for us to go!"

The Ultimate Lifeform frowned when he saw most of the others standing up and apparently readying themselves for the incoming task. Shadow clicked his tongue in slight agitation. "You can't possibly think that everyone is going, Faker."

He felt incredulous gazes on him, but he ignored them. Sonic pursed his lips, giving him a confused look. "I mean, Vanilla isn't going of course, but uh…I thought the rest were?"

"More people means more liabilities," Shadow simply stated, tone inarguable.

"But wait Shadow!" Rosy bounded up to him, eyes swirling with bewilderment. "We need to go! What if evil Espio tries something again? Because we all know that he's gonna be there with this place's Eggman! The more people going means that you have more backup!" A piko piko hammer materialized in her grip. "Amy even gave me one of her hammers! I'm ready!" Rosy's voice lowered a bit, filled with emotion. "I…I just want Silver and Rogue and Cream to come back safe…"

Amy stepped up beside her with her own signature weapon in hand. Her jades were shining with determination. "Yeah! With the more of us there, the more intimidated that Espio will be! He _won't_ try anything will all of us there! And just think, Cream'll be so happy to see all of us there for her!"

"I'm with her a HUNDRED percent!" Vector agreed with the pinkette. "Getting her from that evil chameleon's clutches and reuniting her with Ms. Vanilla here would make anyone's day!" Said rabbit smiled warmly at that. "And plus, I doubt he would make any moves with ME in the front lines!" The croc jabbed a thumb into his own chest. "He'll be running for the hills in no time!"

CB flew around Shadow's head a couple times before hovering in front of his face. The bee ignored the small scowl the Ultimate Lifeform had on his muzzle. "And we need to be there for Silver and Rogue! They're gonna be scared! We have to be there for m…mor…mora…"

"Moral support?" Red suggested.

CB nodded. "Yeah that! We have to make them feel safe! Especially Silver, he gets scared easily…"

Shadow was fully aware of this and all of that was said, but-

"Just wait a second people." Rouge held her hands up in a calm down gesture. "Before you all get your panties in a twist, shouldn't we ask who he has in mind to go first? _I_ think it's a good idea." She turned to Shadow and gestured to him when no one made a comment after that. "The floor's yours, sugar."

Shadow subtly nodded to her before uttering, "Both Fakers, Omega, and I are going."

VC blinked. "Wait…That's it?"

"But you're going to need more than that!" Rosy loudly opposed. TT placed a hand on her arm in attempt to calm her down, but it didn't work. "I need to see… We _all_ need to see-"

"Whoa whoa _whoa,_ " Knuckles interrupted her, anger easily detectible in his gruff voice. The echidna moved the two pinkettes out of the way so he could glare down the Ultimate Lifeform. "I personally think that you left out someone: the _guardian_ of the _Master Emerald!_ "

Shadow didn't hesitate to return the heat. "I didn't forget anyone."

The red Mobian clenched his fists. "I'm not letting you take _my_ charge anywhere! I don't care if it is going to be traded off, I'm _going_ to be there when it happens!"

Sonic glanced between the echidna and the hedgehog before lingering on the latter. "Hey look, I personally think that we have another seat avail-"

Shadow responded like the speedster hadn't even spoken. "You're not needed. Once I take us to Central City, Omega is strong enough to carry the Master Emerald to the specific location."

Knuckles gave Omega a pointed look before refocusing on the striped hedgehog. "But it's _my-_ "

"That doesn't _matter,_ " Shadow growled out, growing tired of this back and forth argument. "The more people that go, the more likely that chameleon will do something drastic. Coming back with corpses isn't the plan here." Shadow tore his gaze off the guardian and swept it across the group gathered around, specifically the foreign ones. "You know what _exactly_ happened the last time I took you all with me."

The mood of the clearing immediately subdued.

Half of the faces were twisted in various degrees of sadness, while the other half were filled with empathy. Mephiles and Vanilla were the extremes in both cases.

Knuckles' ire had drained a bit, but he was still set on going. "I can track where the Master Emerald is going, if they are based close enough."

"Again, you're not needed," Shadow reiterated, which made the echidna's brow furrow. "As soon as we get Rogue, Cream, and Silver, we're turning Super and ending this as soon as possible."

"What about a plan B?" Tails asked, namesakes swishing behind him. "I know you're planning for this to go off without a hitch, but…expect the unexpected right? If the evil Espio does something drastic like you said, what then?"

Shadow thought for a moment. If that chameleon had something up his sleeve (which was not completely impossible), what could they do? Especially if he and Eggman still had the prisoners in their grasp? Going Super might as well be signing the hostages' lives away.

"I can be a plan B, or at least, part of it."

The Ultimate Lifeform trained his rubies on the purple chameleon who had spoken. Shadow scanned the ninja's bandaged body as Espio walked up to him, gaze serious. His words were sure as he continued, "I can hide in the shadows and help out if things go awry. Neither he nor Eggman should expect such play since they have the ones we want, and they would predict us to be as truthful as possible to prevent any complications."

 _They don't expect us to take any risks._ Shadow looked over the ninja once more. "I need to fully heal you before we get there."

Espio nodded. "Understood."

There was a growl from the side as Faker 2.0 stomped over, glaring at both Espio and Shadow. " _He's_ not coming with us."

Rosy scoffed and put her hands on her hips. "And to think, I almost forgot you were here," she muttered under her breath.

Sonic's double disregarded that statement, focused on the reptilian face that he had grown to hate the most. "I do _not_ want to see his effing face more than I need to." Vanilla frowned at his word choice, but this time, the azure hedgehog's fuming ire was enough to keep her at bay this time. He crossed his arms, frown prominent on his muzzle. "You want a Chaos-damned plan B just because that freak says so?"

The uncomfortable expression that flashed for less than a second on Tails' face wasn't missed by Sonic. Said older brother's green irises hardened marginally, quills somewhat bristling. "Hey, that was uncalled for!"

Once again, the hero was unnoticed. His doppelganger pointed over to a slightly surprised Mephiles. "If you want a shitty plan B, take him instead of this jackass." He sneered over at Espio, and the ninja's eye twitched again. "If he doesn't go, then I won't _accidentally_ attack him if and when things go to hell."

Shadow barely glanced over at the severely hesitant shadow 'hog. "He doesn't have enough experience. The chameleon is going, whether you like it or not."

The speedster scowled before narrowing his eyes at a stoic Espio. "You _better_ stay out of the damned way."

Before Espio responded, Knuckles butted back into the conversation. "Why the hell is he going anyway?" He grumbled, referring to the blue Mobian. "He'll be nothing but a foul-mouthed distraction."

"Yeah!" Charmy buzzed, tapping his chin. "From the stuff I know, he kinda…hates everyone! He's the worst person to take!"

"Listen here _bee_ ," said hedgie started, scowling at the floating insect. "I'm goin' because _I_ have a personal vendetta against that fu-" Vanilla cleared her throat, and the hedgehog resisted flipping the mother off. "- _stupid_ reptile!"

"And we _don't?_ " Knuckles loudly rebutted.

"The kid isn't dead, is she?" He whirled on the echidna. "Is she gone? _No!_ But _my_ city is! My _world_ is! All because of that freakin' chameleon!"

"You're acting like that you're the only one who lived in Station Square!" Rosy clenched her fists. "You're not making any sens-"

"The hell you mean?" The semi-hero barked, growing more heated, "I'm apparently the only one who cared about it! It looks that you forgot who the _fuck_ brought him to the city!" Rosy bit her lip while VC and CB glanced away, guilt etched into their features. Vanilla was about to open her mouth, but he saw her and shut her down immediately. "You need to shut your mouth because the only person you are in charge of isn't even _here_ , so you have _no_ authority to say a single damned _word._ "

The mother slowly closed her maw in shock; Vector was on her side at an instant. "You have NO right to talk to Ms. Vanilla like that! I swear to Chaos if you speak like that to her again…!"

Amy was waving around her hammer, fire in her eyes that was aimed at a single blue hedgehog. "Take back what you said _right now!_ Ms. Vanilla doesn't deserve your horrible treatment!" Then the pinkette's anger redirected onto Shadow. "And you want him to go _with you_?"

"Okay guys! Can't we just…breathe for a sec?" Sonic held up his hands not unlike how Rouge did before, making eye contact with the ones most involved with the argument (the longest being with his doppelganger). His words caused a standstill. The Mobians still seemed a bit wired, but there was a pause in the altercation, which he desperately wanted. "There we go… I think it's best if-"

"We just leave," Shadow interrupted him, seeing that being here wasn't benefitting anyone. "The time to meet is coming up. Standing here and arguing isn't going to get Rogue, Silver, and Cream back. It's a waste of time and energy." The striped hedgehog brushed past a brooding Knuckles and made his way over to the Master Emerald. He folded his arms over his chest. "Let's go. Bring the emeralds except the other red one. We don't need any _more_ complications."

Faker 2.0 scoffed before pulling said gem out of his quills and chucking it over to Red, who barely caught it. Shadow was relieved that the twin didn't put up a fight; even _he_ knew that taking all eight could end up being disastrous. The speedster then went over to stand beside the Ultimate Lifeform. "I call dibs on that piece of shit first," he murmured, "Can't guarantee no 'friendly fire' if you get in my effing way."

"Actions speak louder than words," Shadow retorted with a rivaling glare, "That chameleon is open game. But we _must_ wait until we have those three safely on our side." _Though…I doubt the word 'wait' exists in any Sonic's vocabulary._

A noncommittal grunt was the only response he received.

"I AM READY TO DESTROY..." Omega's monotonous voice filled the air as he stood on the opposite side of Shadow.

Said hedgie resisted the urge to sigh. "Only after we retrieve our targets."

"…AFTER WE RETRIEVE OUR TARGETS."

Rouge just shook her head. "Think before you aim, hon."

"I ALWAYS DO."

Boom scowled over at the robot, body tense. He wanted to take apart that mech just like he wanted to attack the chameleon right here in the yard. It didn't matter how much he was exposed to this 'good' robot, Boom needed it gone. However, seeing that it was part of Stripes' little _team_ , his need may go unfulfilled.

Espio stiffy strolled over to the ME, his healing wounds throbbing a bit. It was nothing he couldn't handle, and according to Shadow's words from earlier, he wouldn't have the injuries anymore soon enough. He didn't say anything as he stood, feeling the steady hostility roll off of the blue twin's shoulders. It wasn't that he was intimidated – not in the slightest – but he knew that the angrier the doppelganger got, the more…disjunctive things became. They didn't have any room for flaws here.

Sonic, the last of the little group, gave the remaining Mobians an apologetic grin as he joined his striped rival over by the large emerald. "So uh…I guess we're off! Just sit tight, because we'll be back in no time with our friends!" He focused on the grumpy guardian. "And with your pet rock too, Knux."

Knuckles gritted his teeth, staring at the Master Emerald. "I just don't understand why I can't go."

"Because you just can't."

The guardian frowned at his twin's voice. "And who asked you?"

Red shrugged. "No one, but since Shadow's words aren't doing it for you, maybe you can listen to mine." He continued before Knuckles could get out an vexed retort. "There's a couple reasons. One, because they aren't going to let the ME go anywhere, they don't need our tracking ability. Two, if you went, Espio and Eggman would be put on guard because I'm sure they know what you can do. They don't need to be on guard until it's too late. And three, speed is key."

"Speed is key?!" Knuckles repeated, ignoring the other's first two points that made perfect sense. A tick formed on the guardian's forehead. "I'm _pretty_ sure that I'm faster than that hunk of metal Shadow has as a teammate!"

Red twisted and turned the Chaos emerald in his hands, stifling a yawn. "You might be, but that robot doesn't have any nerves in his neck that can be targeted. Everyone besides Omega is a hard target to hit, but if you went…"

"He kinda has a point, Knuckles…"

"Hush it, Tails. Unless you want me to yell at you too."

Red saw the kit intelligently retreat. "Well, you can do all the shouting you want. It isn't going to change anything."

Knuckles narrowed his eyes at him. "And why the heck not?"

"Because they're already gone."

True to the doppelganger's words, there was nothing but an empty patch of grass where Shadow's group had been standing.

Knuckles was beginning to think that he liked it more when he was the only echidna alive.

* * *

When Shadow popped back into existence, he took his hand off the Master Emerald and glanced at all of his surroundings. There were roads, cars, buildings, and stores that would define a generic city; however, their placement and overall atmosphere of the bustling metropolis let Shadow know that his Chaos Control had been accurate, and they had arrived in Central City.

It wasn't like he expected anything less – he had used the Master Emerald's energy after all – but he didn't know how the half-powered emeralds would affect the move by just being around the larger jewel. Not much, he could safely say.

The striped hedgehog took his gaze off of the immediate area and focused on the ones around him. Omega was simply staring back, waiting for the next step. Espio and Sonic were still taking in their surroundings, and the other Faker was glaring at the ground, muted recognition in his eyes. Shadow marginally rose a brow, but didn't question it further. Recalled memories could hit hard; he knew that from experience.

"Alright, we made it!" Sonic put a hand on his hip. "Well y'know…kinda…" He turned towards Shadow, expression questioning. "Metal told us to meet Egghead in the northern part of the city right?"

The Ultimate Lifeform nodded. "The northern outskirts."

Espio picked at a bandage around his torso. "And we all know that Eggman isn't the only one that's going to be there. Prepare yourselves."

"Like we need any advice from _you_." Faker 2.0 snarled out, quills bristled. "Just shut up. Your voice is pissin' me off."

The chameleon paused in toying with the gauze to tilt his head at the twin. "If we fail because you, you have no one else to blame but yourself."

"I bet you know _all_ about that, huh?" The speedster stepped forward and jabbed a finger into the ninja's chest. "Or you should! Especially because it's _your_ fault that your stupid twin is still runnin' loose! 'It ended up in a tie' is a bullshit excuse for-"

"An excuse?" The ghost of a frown marred Espio's face, highly affronted. "I almost lost my _life._ "

"Join the _fucking_ club," the azure hedgie spat.

Irritated amber orbs drifted over to an observant Shadow. "I highly suggest you control him before we rendezvous with the other side."

"He isn't mine to control," Shadow said before gesturing for Espio to stand right in front of him. The ninja did so after a moment, and the striped 'hog began to heal him. "Even though he _should_ calm the hell down before we head for the spot. If something does go wrong because of your childlike behavior, I _will_ switch targets," he threatened.

The addressed simply responded by flipping him off.

Omega's monotonous voice filled the air. "SHADOW, I DO NOT FAVOR HIS EXISTANCE."

He inwardly sighed. "Not everyone likes him either, Omega."

"You shut up too before I turn you into effing scrap metal." Emerald orbs bored into red and black paint like they wanted the mech to melt down just because of the heat sent the bot's way.

" _Someone_ hasn't ever tried being a team player…" Sonic ran a hand through his quills before tapping his foot. "Okay look, Boom-"

Shadow blinked, stopping the flow of energy to his hands for a moment. _Boom? That's Faker's nickname for him? …It fits._

Boom was instantly in Sonic's personal space. "If you call me that stupid name again-"

"Yeah yeah." The hero waved him off, pushing his twin away. "As I was sayin', you really need to watch that mouth of yours, pal. What you said to Vanilla back there wasn't cool. She was just trying to-"

"I don't give a rat's _ass_ what she was trying to do." Boom cut him off, and Sonic's fists subtly clenched. Shadow could easily tell that the time them two spent together didn't exactly form the best of friendships.

Before anything could escalate (more than it already had), Shadow finished up healing Espio and bobbed his head toward the Master Emerald. "Save it for later," Shadow clipped, "Stop bickering like children and let's go."

When Omega picked up the large gem with both of his arms, all of the members of the seemingly disjunctive group glanced at each other (some gazes showing underlying irritation) before running off in the direction of their missing friends.

* * *

No one was there when they first showed up.

Boom, Sonic, Shadow, and Omega were standing at the edge of a large clearing surrounded by trees. It was a good meeting place as any. Black ears twitched as they tried to focus on any sounds besides the natural ones of the woods and the car horns going off in the distance behind them. Espio was crouching on a tree branch off to the side, invisible to the naked eye.

"ARE WE PERHAPS TOO EARLY?"

"No," Shadow answered smoothly, "We're right on time."

"They _had_ to be slowpokes." Sonic's tone was light, but the suspicious glances he gave to anything that moved proved that it was only to be held at face-value.

"If they had flaked on us, that will be the last thing they would _ever_ do." Boom clenched his teeth, muscles tensed and ready.

Shadow opened his mouth to reply, but another voice beat him to the punch.

"I don't believe that giving out death threats to the kidnappers of your beloved friends is a good idea."

It was a very familiar one, but the underlying maliciousness made it _very_ clear exactly which one of the purple chameleons decided to speak up, if the 'kidnappers' part alone didn't already identify the speaker.

The evil Espio wasn't even invisible as he strolled out through the threshold, out of the shade of the trees and into the sun's rays. There wasn't a scratch in the corrupted chameleon, making Shadow's guess about Penumbra more valid in his mind.

While Shadow resisted the urge to throw himself across the clearing, Boom would have actually done it if Sonic hadn't held an arm out, green irises piercing as they took in the purple reptile's form. Omega had remained still, but Shadow knew that at the smallest sign of danger, the robot would unleash his vast arsenal.

In the trees, Espio crouched lower on his branch and steadied his breathing, ready for anything.

A sole amber orb scanned the four present, lingering on the two blue hedgehogs. The grin that grew was anything but pleasant. "So I finally get to meet you two at the same time." His attention drifted back and forth between the two before settling on Boom. "Do you like your twin? He's tamer than you are, and I really can't decide if that's a compliment or not."

Boom pressed against Sonic's arm. "You're a cocky little shit, aren't you?"

The ninja rose a brow. "Coming from you? No. You've already filled that seat." He focused on Sonic and Shadow. "Am I wrong?"

"We're really not in the mood for any chitchat," Sonic said over the growls. "I'm not a very patient guy. How 'bout we cut to the chase and get to trading, yeah? I'm sure we both got places to go and people to see."

"Rushing," the corrupted one started, "It must be a blue hedgehog _quirk._ " He gave Shadow's ready stance a once-over. "Or rather, all hedgehogs must have it."

"I'm tired of all this damn talking!" Shadow shouted, voice guttural, "Let's do what we all _came_ here to do!" He knew what this Espio was doing. The ninja knew that he had full control of the situation, and he was milking it for all it was worth. Shadow's group couldn't do anything until their friends were handed over. Now, everything was dependent on that chameleon.

Espio didn't respond to his words. The reptile saw Omega standing beside Shadow with the Master Emerald resting behind him and decided to latch onto that visual. "Guess I'm not the only one with a loyal machine by his side. It's too bad that my Omega isn't here. That would've been an interesting fight to watch."

Some of Omega's gears whirled. "I WOULD HAVE DECIMATED THAT INFERIOR MODEL, AND NOTHING WOULD HAVE STOPPED ME FROM DOING SO."

The grin turned into a cruel and knowing smirk. "We'll have to test that theory later on, then."

Shadow didn't like this subject matter, so he switched the topic onto one that Espio mentioned in passing. "Why isn't the other Omega here?" _The better question is why are you the only one?_

"…He's busy." The corrupted chameleon dusted some pollen off of his arm. "I'll tell you what he's doing once you fully understand the situation." He angled his head back toward the tree line. "Eggman, Metal Sonic, you can come out now."

Shadow's blazing rubies snapped away from the evil reptile and trained themselves on the rustling bushes behind the purple nuisance. Metal Sonic burst out into the open first with a limp Silver thrown over his shoulder. Shadow's eyes widened at the sight of the clearly unconscious psychic. Silver was blindfolded, gagged, and cuffed, but that wasn't the worst of it. He was _covered_ with blood, and there was still some oozing out of the many cuts and gashes he had on his body.

The sight had stunned the others as well. Boom had forgotten about his anger for a quick moment as he took in the formerly white one's condition. "What the hell…"

Sonic took a marginal step back, covering his mouth with his hand. "Oh _Chaos…_ "

The still-hidden Espio had to look away for a second, stomach doing flips at the thought of how much pain the other Silver had to have gone through.

Then Eggman was next. He floated out on his hovercraft, and Rogue was in no better condition Silver was in. He was bloody and bound, but he wasn't blindfolded. However, the painful looking muzzle on his face and the tight restrictions on his arms made up for it.

"I DO NOT CARE WHAT WORLD THEY COME FROM," Omega started, arms twitching. "ANYONE WHO MESSES WITH A ROUGE WILL BE DECIMATED."

" _Don't_ , Omega," Shadow hissed through clenched teeth, even though he was struggling with following his own orders, "Wait until we get them."

"Shads…" At Sonic's low and slightly shaky voice, black furred ears swiveled in the hero's direction, not bothering to take his eyes off of their adversaries. The blue speedster pointed to the doctor. "Look at Eggman… See that collar?"

Once Shadow tore his gaze off of Rogue's body, he did see the collar. And more importantly, he saw how much rage the doctor had in his system. The man didn't bother to hide it, his expression twisted in ire. He wasn't the sure and cocky doctor Shadow had expected him to be. The Ultimate Lifeform focused on Eggman's face, then the collar, and then the smug Espio.

Shadow didn't know what that collar did, but he had a feeling that chameleon sure as hell knew.

"Hey Eggy!" Sonic called, voice more controlled. "Startin' to get into fashion I see! Didn't know that you're into dog collars though, what's up with that?"

Eggman scowled at him, but didn't say a word.

Shadow definitely knew that something was wrong now.

"Who cares about that fatass?" Boom growled out, eyes narrowing at Espio. "What the eff did you do to them?! I _swear-_ "

"I didn't do anything." Espio cut him off, radiating arrogance.

"You _lying_ son of a bitch!" Boom slid into a readier position, teeth bared. He was ready to blast off. "Then what the hell am I looking at?"

"I suggest that you silence yourself before we kill them." Metal's voice rung out for the first time.

That made Boom hold his tongue, but it only made Sonic's looser. "Aw c'mon Mets! You don't want to work for a loser like this Espio, do ya? He's nowhere as cool as ours, and I personally think that Eggman's a better-" His worlds trailed off when Metal repositioned Silver so that his metallic claws could rip the psychic's throat open at any given second.

"I think that that's enough _chitchat_ for now," the evil reptile said, mocking Sonic's earlier use of the phrase. "Let's do what we came here to do." He grinned over at Shadow, making the Ultimate Lifeform's blood boil.

Then he realized that something, or rather _someone_ , was missing.

And Sonic must have notice it too at the same time. "Where's Cream?" They both demanded, and Shadow had a sinking feeling in his gut.

Espio's smirk widened; Shadow wanted to wipe that smile right off that reptile's face. "She's with my Omega back at the base. He's watching her, and well, if anything goes… _sour_ here, then I can contact him so he can make sure you'll never see her again."

Shadow ground his teeth together so hard that it was borderline painful. He should've _known_ that the evil reptile would pull some shit like this. Espio was basically holding a gun up to Cream's head, just _waiting_ for them to make a bad move. Damnit…in a split second, the bunny could be dead. What did that mean for their plan on going Super?

Looking the chameleon over, the Ultimate Lifeform didn't see any radio on his body, but the striped one wasn't willing to take the risk. Maybe if he let their adversaries leave with the Master Emerald, and then when they got far enough away, the hedgehogs could power up and catch them by surprise.

"But that's…!" It seemed like Sonic didn't know to be either enraged or terrified, his voice filled with ire, but his body wavering at the new information, the threat throwing them all off. "That's not what was promised!" He thrusted a finger over at his metallic doppelganger. "Metal! You said that you'll give us _all_ of our friends for the Master Emerald!"

Metal explained as blood dripped down his robot body. "I did not. You have heard incorrectly, something I should have expected from my inferior copy. I told you that we will trade you your friends. I do not recall saying which ones."

"You won't…You won't kill her," Sonic breathed out as his body tensed up, gaze switching from Espio to Eggman. Shadow knew that it wouldn't work to silently communicate to the doctor. Eggman wasn't the one in charge here.

"Really?" The corrupted one cocked his head. "Considering the conditions of your friends here, and the dead Chao rotting away somewhere else, I think that it wouldn't be too hard to do so."

"You _son of a bitch!_ You planned this all along!" Boom yelled out, quills bristled and body trembling to go and beat the other within an inch of his life. However, Sonic harshly grabbed his arm so he wouldn't do anything irreversible.

Too bad that he stopped the wrong hedgehog.

Shadow, fed up with _everything_ the chameleon had done and _would continue to do_ , couldn't control his anger which led to him pulling on the energy emitting from the Chaos emerald hidden in his quills. He could think of nothing but smashing the evil Espio's face in before he could realize that anything happened. Using all of his focus, Shadow warped right in front of Espio and pulled back a fist ready to demolish.

Within the next second, a surprised Mobian was sent flying.

And it wasn't the corrupt reptile.

Shadow couldn't stop the pained yell that escaped his lips as he was thrown to the side, the heel of a foot his cheek had acquainted with left his face throbbing in agony. The striped hedgehog landed hard and rolled before he regained his wits and got his feet back under him. Shadow cradled his cheek as he focused on where the evil reptile was, wondering how the hell the other got such a hit on him, but the answer he received wasn't the one he was expecting.

His eyes were wide as they took in Penumbra's form standing protectively in front of Espio, maroon irises never straying away from Shadow's own rubies.

Shadow's muscles involuntarily tensed, never taking his gaze off of his twin as he slowly stood back up, cheek still throbbing. His theory was right. Penumbra had healed Espio's broken arm. Because that chameleon had persuaded…wait.

The Ultimate Lifeform shifted his attention over to Eggman, more specifically, Eggman's collar around his neck. Was Espio controlling Penumbra in the same way? That was his hope; this situation wouldn't be as bad as it seemed because the solution revolved around merely breaking an invention, but Shadow didn't see any proof on his doppelganger's body of any suspicious device. It was completely possible that Espio had just manipulated Penumbra, the moldable sponge he was.

And if Penumbra had attacked _Shadow_ … Espio had put in some serious work.

"I knew that something like that would happen, so I came prepared." The corrupted chameleon commented smugly. He bobbed his head back over to where Shadow had come from. "Now I suggest that you go back over to your side before I do something drastic."

Not wanting the other to press any buttons that would end in catastrophe, Shadow inwardly cursed and teleported back over to his just-as-shocked teammates.

"So we finally meet him, huh?" Sonic murmured loud enough for Shadow and Boom to hear. Emerald orbs took in the ruffled striped quills, the claws, and the piercing maroon stare that was currently moving between Sonic and Boom. The gaze was blank however. Unreadable. Sonic put a hand on his hip. "Talk about a walk on the wild side."

"Wild? Bullshit," Boom spat. "You see how he hops around from owner to owner. He's nothing but a stupid pet."

"It's rude to talk about people out of earshot, pal." Sonic rose a semi-mocking brow. "Wanna go say that to his face?"

Boom glared at him. "Do _you_ wanna shut the-"

"Be _quiet_ ," Shadow hissed at them. "This is _not_ the time for that."

"HOWEVER, I BELIEVE THAT IT IS TIME TO RETALIATE." Omega's voice was heard by all as his arms morphed into flamethrowers. "WORTHLESS COPIES SHOULD BE ELIMINATED."

Shadow whirled on him. "Omega, he's _not_ w-"

His words then caught in his throat when a loud growl came from the opposite side of the clearing. Penumbra was glaring hard at the red and black mech, baring his elongated canines. The darker striped hedgehog sunk to the ground on all fours as his quills bristled, growls becoming more and more guttural.

Sonic whistled lowly. "So we're up against a crazed Ultimate Lifeform that's fightin' for the bad guy… Sounds familiar. Don't you think so Shads?"

" _Not_ the time, Faker," Shadow snapped.

"I'm so glad that you all are having such nice conversation over there, but I think we shoulde get the show on the road." The evil chameleon's voice cut through the air, stopping any forming retorts. A single amber iris swept over the small group. "But before we do that, I have a simple question. Do you have anyone hidden around here? I just thought I ask, since Penumbra did come out of nowhere."

In the trees, when Espio had heard that question, he was about to hop out in the open then and there. However, Shadow's answer stopped his movements and glued him to his spot.

"No," Shadow lied smoothly. Boom, Sonic, and Omega glanced at him for a split second, but didn't say anything. "We are the only ones here."

Espio scoffed. "Like I believe that. Penumbra." Black ears twitched and rotated in the chameleon's direction, waiting for the purple one to continue. "Find them."

Penumbra promptly sprinted into the trees the next second, and it wasn't long before there was a sharp yell and the hidden Espio was hurled into the clearing, barely managing to hand on his feet. He was rubbing the spot on his arm where he was harshly grabbed.

"The hell?" Boom yelled at the thrown reptile as he joined the next of his team, slightly shaken. "Why the fuck weren't you _invisible_?"

"I _was_." Espio sharply replied back as Penumbra returned the open space and resumed to occupy his place in front of the corrupt chameleon. His heated gaze was trained on the good ninja now, and Shadow was surprised that the latter hadn't instantaneously combusted yet.

The half-blinded twin coolly gazed at Espio. "Is that it?" he asked Penumbra.

"No more," the striped hedgehog's low voice answered, and that had Shadow wondering how much his doppelganger actually understood. Penumbra had learned language easily…and Shadow wouldn't be surprised if the chameleon had taught him for the single fact of making him easier to control.

There was a grunt. The evil twin then addressed Espio. "Under any other circumstances, I would've kept my word, and we would have had a rematch here and now. You should be lucky that we didn't come here to fight, or you'd be lying dead on this ground."

Espio stood up straighter, over his little surprise attack. "What makes you think that you would win? Considering who I have on my side-"

"Considering who I have on _mine._ " His double gestured over to Metal, Penumbra, and Eggman. "And who I have back at the lab, I think the odds are in my favor." He let out a single chuckle before continuing. "But anyway, since we didn't come here to attack," he gave Shadow a pointed look, and the hedgehog scowled back, "It's time to trade."

"I was starting to wonder if we were just going to stand here and talk all day." Metal began to walk towards the center of the clearing. "Because if we had, then I would have to take this situation into my own hands."

"That might not be such a bad idea Mets!" Sonic suggested, "How about you and I fight and then whoever wins-"

"Save it." Metal interrupted, dumping Silver unceremoniously at his metallic feet. "There will be a more opportune moment to fight. I am not going to do it on _your_ terms."

"You saying no to a fight?" Sonic glanced between the blue mech and the Espio across the way. "What, did he mess with your inner wires or somethin'?"

"Are you seriously having a damn conversation with this pile of shit?" Boom snarled, glaring death at the metallic hedgehog, but still regarded his blue double. "You really need to learn to shut your stupid mouth. The more you talk, the more I have to hear that _trash's_ voice!"

Shadow had taken his eyes off of Silver's bleeding body just in time to see Metal's claws clench. "Careful who you call trash, flawed copy. I almost killed you. Can trash do that?"

"Stop," the Ultimate Lifeform had called out when it seemed like Boom was about to lunge. "The more you argue, the more blood Silver and Rogue lose. We need to get them help quickly; I don't think that they would let me get close to them while you're all _chatting_."

Espio, who had been quiet throughout the exchange, spoke up softly. "What about Cream?"

"What about her?" Shadow gritted out. Sonic turned towards him in shock, and he addressed the both of them. "She isn't here. We have to put the focus into the ones who are, plain and simple. She won't die if we don't push." _Right now at least. Once they get far enough away to not suspect anything, we can go Super and follow them back to the base._ Shadow shifted his gaze onto Penumbra, who was listening in silence. _We have to be extra careful._

Espio stared at him for a long moment before nodding, but apparently Sonic didn't catch on. "But Shads, what about Vanilla?! And Knuckles! We can't just go back without the ME and just-"

"What can we _do_ , Faker?" Shadow snapped, and Sonic trailed off.

"From the way you're talking Sonic," the evil reptile butted in, "It seems like you don't think Silver's and Rogue's lives are worth the trade."

Sonic shook his hands innocently. "Th-That's not what I meant! I'm just _saying_ that-"

"Well, maybe if you have second thoughts, maybe I should have them too."

"Didn't I tell you to fucking _shut up_?!" Boom hissed as Sonic, words filled with poison.

Metal glanced back over his shoulder at his partner-in-crime. "That had better been an anxiety-inducing tactic and nothing else. We are getting the Master Emerald today, right now."

Said chameleon waved him off. "Of course it was. Don't worry." He turned to a reserved (yet obviously enraged) Eggman, who hadn't moved from his place. The evil Espio rose a brow. "And why haven't you moved yet?" The doctor's jaw clenched, but he didn't answer. The small smirk that grew wasn't subtle. "Thought so. Go dump him."

Shadow knew that Eggman wanted to say something. The man always talked; he was hardly silent during schemes. If nothing else, he and the Faker had that talkative trait in common. Because of this, Shadow absolutely _knew_ that the doctor was under control somehow when the man just hovered quietly over to the center and let Rogue down like he was told to.

"Y'know, I'm putting your Espio in the number two spot on my 'Most Hated Ever' list. Him and our Mephiles are tied." Sonic whispered, and Shadow wholeheartedly agreed, except those two heathens were in the first place spot (everyone knew that a certain liquid would forever be at the top of Faker's list).

Both Metal and Eggman then began to return back to their side of the clearing, leaving the two bleeding Mobians in the middle; the single-eyed Mobian was smirking all the while. "Now that's done, Shadow, give me the Master Emerald." He then snickered, observing the remaining hero team. "If any of you move a muscle, she dies."

Shadow despised hostage situations. They left the rescuer at the kidnapper's _mercy_ until the perfect time came. Shadow hated that feeling with a passion. He knew what scum the chameleon was. He should've _expected_ this to happen. The striped hedgehog glanced over to the detective Espio, and cursed Penumbra's heightened senses. Espio could've snuck up on the other and potentially disarmed him while he and the others dealt with Eggman (who Shadow doubted would actually fight) and Metal.

But no. Life didn't work out like that.

So with a low growl, Shadow went over to the large jewel, touched it, and Chaos controlled over the chameleon he wanted to throttle the most. He was now standing in front of the reptile, giving him the nastiest look he could muster up. Espio seemed unfazed. In fact, the only one who reacted to that expression was Penumbra, who snarled a bit louder and stood on both feet, trying to look intimidating.

That didn't affect Shadow of course, but what did was the subtle curiosity that had etched itself into Penumbra's features, that expression belonging to him more than the wild anger. Shadow was too focused on the reason for it to react in time when his twin plunged a clawed hand into his quills, yanking out a red Chaos emerald.

Shadow reacted immediately (they _needed_ that jewel) and swiped his hand where the gem would have been if Penumbra hadn't wisely hopped back out of reach with his teeth bared. The older Ultimate Lifeform was about to follow his double, but then there was a kunai suddenly held up to his neck, halting his movements.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." An amber iris bored into his own, swirling with confidence. "Finders keepers, right?" Espio glanced over at Penumbra examining the half-powered jewel before returning his gaze on the frozen Shadow. "Your twin is very useful. I'm glad that we have him on our side."

Shadow clenched his fists so hard that his nails bit into his palm. "I swear to Chaos that you will _die_ by my own hands," he whispered harshly.

The chameleon smirked. "Promises are meant to be broken." He then jabbed his head over at the other striped hedgehog, hand still at Shadow's throat. "Penumbra, give the rock to Eggman." The hesitance was barely noticeable before the emerald was tossed over to the doctor, who gripped it tightly. Espio glanced over to Metal. "Come get the Master Emerald." When the bot didn't move, he rolled his eye. "Please?"

"That is better," Metal quipped before going over and eventually getting the jewel off the ground.

Espio huffed, lowering the weapon and backing up, standing between the blue mech and the silent doctor. "Well, that's that." He jumped up on Eggman's craft and yanked the gem from his hands, tossing it up and down. "We'll take our leave." Penumbra went over to touch the Master Emerald, but before anything happened, Espio spoke again. "Don't, Penumbra. You don't need to do that. While we leave, you are going to stay here and keep them from following us. Attack them if you need to. Come when _they_ leave. Do you understand?"

The double's body straightened up when the word 'attack' was uttered. Shadow knew that this wasn't going to end well. Penumbra nodded.

The criminal reptile grinned. "Good." He turned to Shadow and then the rest behind him. "Until next time."

He had the nerve to wave at Shadow before the trio disappeared into the trees.

The striped hedgehog had barely shifted his weight forward before a heavy body was knocked into him, sending him painfully to the ground. Shadow sucked in a sharp breath when he landed on his back, but he soon forgot his pain when he saw Penumbra snarling over him.

Before Shadow did anything like violently retaliate, he pushed away his instincts for a moment and thought logically. Penumbra needed to be calmed down and fighting him wouldn't exactly do that. If Shadow still had any authority over his twin, then he could talk to the other and hope to snap him out of whatever he was in.

Shadow locked eyes with his mirror image. "Penumbra, get off."

There was a blink, and Shadow's hopes rose right before crashing right back down when Penumbra began growling again, louder this time. However, Nummy's attention then drifted off of him and onto a blue blur whizzing by. Shadow immediately turned his head in the other direction, seeing Espio and…Sonic crouching by Silver and Rogue, both watching as apparently Boom made a break for it.

 _What's that idiot thinking? The best plan now is to let Penumbra lead us to the base later! There's no way in hell that they won't hear the Faker's fe-"_

"Ahh!"

At that yell, Shadow trained his gaze over to Boom, who was twitching on the grassy ground, quills pointing everywhere. Penumbra was still straddling the striped hedgehog, but now his hand was held out, yellow static-like energy sparking from his fingertips.

Shadow deeply frowned. Words weren't going to work here.

Using his agile body, he managed to wedge his legs in between his and Penumbra's stomachs, hurling the latter away from him. Shadow jumped to his feet and let out a growl of his own. Nummy landed on all fours, shaking off the unexpected shove and bristling his quills.

Shadow's voice was commanding. "Let us go."

He didn't expect a near coherent answer. "If you go, she die." Penumbra bared his teeth, crouching low to the ground, clawing into it and ready to pounce. "And you die."

Shadow did nothing but scowl. It looked like he was going to have to beat some sense into his twin. So be it.

However, before they could clash in any way, gunshots rang out. The twins both reflexively jumped back as bullets imbedded themselves in the dirt in the space in front of where Penumbra had been standing. Omega was jetting over, his arms pointing right at the wild hedgehog.

He landed beside Shadow. "IF YOU ATTACK MY COMRADE, YOU ATTACK ME. IT DOES NOT MATTER WHO YOU ARE."

At the sight of the red and black bot, piercing maroon orbs narrowed. Penumbra curled and began to spin in place, aiming himself at the mech. He launched himself, but he didn't get far for a blue ball smashed into him, sending the wayward spin dasher in Shadow's direction.

Swiftly, said hedgehog jumped up higher than in incoming projectile, front-flipped in the air, and brought his foot down on a body part that he couldn't currently name. However, given that Penumbra's head was the first thing that crashed into the ground, Shadow had a good guess.

The striped hedgie was lying still in the grass, face down. Shadow landed softly, staring at his limp double, and seeing Sonic cross his arms out of the corner of his eye. "Well." The hero pursed his lips. "This whole situation totally just took a hard left."

"Th…The asshole d-deserved it…" Boom stuttered out as he stumbled his way over, still feeling the effects of that Chaos Spear. He stood over Penumbra, trying and failing to keep his arms from twitching. "Stupid, dumb, pet…"

"HE IS EXTREMELY VOLATILE. EVEN MORE THAN YOU, SHADOW." Omega commented, lowering his weapons.

"Not volatile," Shadow sighed out, mind whirling. His twin had to know where the base was, and if not, he could possibly trace the trio's scents. Not the plan they had originally thought of, but then again, they didn't count on losing a Chaos emerald and Cream being a no-show. "Unpredictable."

Chaotix Espio then walked up, gazing at the downed 'hog somewhat cautiously. "Hopefully he isn't so much so when he wakes up. We are going to need him to be our bloodhound. While we wait for that however…" The reptile peered over his shoulder, looking at the two bodies staining the grass beneath them. "They are losing a lot of blood, Shadow."

The Ultimate Lifeform felt the low energy pumping from the sole emerald left in his quills. "I'm on it."

"Do you think that Cream's in the same condition they're in?" Sonic asked in a voice so soft that it had Shadow pausing in his stride. He looked over at the speedster to see him gazing at Silver and Rogue, obviously replacing them with the body of a bleeding bunny, his anguish not hard to decipher.

Shadow didn't want to think that she was, but… "I don't know, Faker."

Sonic let out a breath that wasn't as stable as it should have been.

"THINK POSITIVELY. IT IS WHAT SHE WOULD BE DOING RIGHT NOW." Omega advised, causing Sonic to give him a small smile.

"Yeah, she would…"

Boom scoffed, his muscles mostly under control now. "Wise words for a pile of metallic junk."

"I TAKE THAT AS A COMPLIMENT."

Observing the interaction, Shadow resisted the urge to sigh. He took a step toward the pair of injured Mobians.

Then an explosion went off.

* * *

The trees were whirling by as he ran, his nose taking in the many smells and only focusing on a particular one. His powerful fingers dug into the dirt and grass, propelling himself forward. He wasn't going full speed though. Every stride he took made his head pound even more, the bruise there present for all to see.

As he sped around and through the never ending plants, Nummy couldn't help but to mutter 'sorry' to himself repeatedly, wishing that Shadow could somehow hear and forgive him.

While he did that, the hedgehog hidden in Penumbra's shadow hoped that he could successfully save the two still held captive. The innocent child and the penitent weapon.

Whether or not he could actually do it, he was going to try anyway.

He needed to.

* * *

 **Next chapter...infiltration!**


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer- Still don't.**

 **A/N- Woo! An update! And I did it in under a month this time XD I'm gettin' a hang of this college thing…kinda…**

 **But anyway, enjoy!**

 **Chapter 28- More mistakes were made**

Pain.

Pain.

And wow…even more pain.

But it's okay. Pain was good, great even.

Pain meant that he was alive.

And given what he had already been through, this new burning pain was welcomed with open arms.

Rogue had regained consciousness in steps. First, he felt the sizzling on his raw skin, the unforgiving muzzle strapped around his head, the rope and cuffs restraining his arms and legs, and the blood dripping out of barely healed gashes he had received from Penumbra before the hedgehog had knocked him out.

Second, he heard nature around him. That was new. Usually, the only sounds he was graced with were the buzzing of overhead lights and the occasional footsteps. Presently…he heard leaves rustling and insects chirping. And now that he knew that he wasn't where he usually was, he recognized that the flooring was different as well. It was rough and not as cold as the ground he was used to.

The third step was him opening his eyes.

He saw the sky. There were a couple of clouds in it, them colored a light orange because of the slowly setting sun. Teal orbs just stared for a moment, wide with disbelief.

He was outside.

He was _outside._

A broad smile grew on his muzzle. The movement stung and he was sure that he had reopened a small wound, but he didn't care; he was outside.

Rogue's elation waned when he had to remind himself that he was still tied and cuffed. Espio could be watching him right now. Was this just a new setting for him to get attacked? Rogue's wing wasn't broken anymore – Penumbra had healed it and not managed to break it again – so he could just fly away. However…how long would it be before Penumbra would just pounce on him?

The bat let out a breathy laugh as wind blew across him, agitating his mysterious burns and making the pain from his oozing gashes more unbearable.

Then again, if he wasn't totally free, he had more chances of weirding the chameleon out and seeing him squirm. And he was going to get his hands loose again eventually…he couldn't wait to see Espio's life leave his eyes, choking on his own blood.

With that image circulating around in his mind, Rogue's focus drifted from the sky above to the trees and plants around him. Then he turned his head – disregarding the agonizing sting as he did so – to take in the clearing he was at the edge of.

Rogue's breath hitched at what he saw, not sure to let joy or terror flow through his system. Silver was closest to him. The psychic was more red than white, burns blistering his exposed skin and laying in his own pool of blood. He was blindfolded and cuffed, both objects stained copper. Silver wasn't moving, and Rogue was about to panic until he saw the minute rise and fall of the hedgehog's chest.

While he was still worried about his friend, what he saw beyond the psychic made him worry even more. He didn't know what to make of the scene. There had been a fight obviously. What exactly happened though? What led up to this?

Espio, Omega, and Penumbra were laid out and injured, but…there were also _two_ Sonic's in the same condition.

Rogue suspected that the chameleon had drugged him with something to make him see double. Or was he just dreaming? Nah. The pain told him otherwise; he didn't need to pinch himself.

The white Mobian groaned as he sat up, the muzzle cradling his jaw only allowing his mouth to move so much. A lot of things pulled painfully, but the bat didn't let that deter him from testing his wings out. They moved jerkily, muscle and skin damaged enough to prevent fluid movement.

Rogue bit his lip as he rolled his shoulders, trying to loosen up everything back there. Taking a deep breath, he flapped them once and the downward wind helped him up to his cuffed feet, the pain emitting from his wings sending shocks throughout his system. But he wasn't going to let that stop him. He had to check out the situation.

No pain, no gain, right?

Inhaling deeply again, the bat swiftly moved his appendages once more, becoming airborne. He knew that he was doing more damage to them, but he had to get around somehow. That was his goal, anyway. And when he attempted to achieve said goal, he crashed to the ground, barely moving a foot from his starting position.

Upon landing, Rogue immediately knew that something in his chest wasn't right. If it wasn't for the sharp pain, the blood he spat out really would've tipped him off.

"This…blows…" he rasped out, flapping his wounded wings again to get off the ground. The bat remained in the air for a bit, making sure that his wings wouldn't give out on him again, before making his way over to Silver, examining his unconscious friend.

Taking in all of the cuts and bruises Silver had on him, Rogue could surely say that them both had it pretty rough in that lab. Well, it was lucky then that Sonic somehow found and rescued them. Rogue glanced over to said hedgehog and his not-really-real twin.

Wishing that he could wipe away the blood drippling down his chin and promptly pushing that thought to the back of his head, Rogue flew over to the first Sonic, the hero laying face-down in the grass. There were major burns on some spots of his body, blue quills singed. Rogue lowered himself as far as he could go and perked his ears, listening. The sounds of breathing were faint, but still there.

 _This one's real…_ The bat soared to where the second Sonic was, and could see clearly that he was breathing, this hero knocked-out on his back. Rogue furrowed his brow at the blistering on the hedgehog's belly before getting closer and nudging the rodent with one of his chained feet. Solid.

"Man… What kind of…drugs did he…put me on…?" Rogue muttered to himself, confused as all hell.

He refrained from coughing as his chest painfully restricted. The bat shifted his attention from the twin to Omega who had apparently collapsed away from the doubles. From what he could see, the bot was missing both of his arms – the two limbs sitting pretty a little distance behind the mech – and some of his parts were melted. He could easily be still functional.

Unfortunately.

Dull irises then locked onto Penumbra, who was splayed out, unconscious like the rest of them. Quills were fried, skin was burnt, a leg was broken, and parts of his gloves – Rogue thought it was hilarious that Espio decided to clothe the dude – were completely missing.

He looked around the clearing again, trying to piece together what the heck happened. From the injuries he'd seen, and from the charred grasses he was flying over, the only thing he could think of was that an explosion had went off somehow. Something more than that bulky robot could whip up, that's for sure.

He'd solve the mystery soon enough though. First, he had a reptile all to himself, and his lips instantly curled up at that thought.

Rogue flew until he was right above the unknowing chameleon. That bat plopped down onto the ground, easy straddling Espio. The ninja's stuttering exhales were loud and clear. Rogue cocked his head when he noticed that there were no wrappings around the other's left eye anymore. He then glanced askance at Penumbra across the way, fingers clenching in slight agitation.

Espio should not get any relief. He didn't deserve it. No. Not with all the stuff that had happened in the past, and definitely not with all the _torture_ he had put Rogue through.

Something glinted in the sun's rays, and Rogue glanced over to see a metallic object sticking out of the cuff of the ninja's glove. He barely stifled a laugh.

Actually, he was kinda glad that Espio had put him through that ordeal. If he hadn't, Rogue wouldn't have hated him nearly enough to do what he was about to do.

Turning his torso, the bat leaned over just enough so his cuffed hands could gingerly remove the kunai from the cloth, fingers slightly trembling as they grasped it. Rogue grinned when he finally had the weapon completely in his grip. He then stuck his tongue out in concentration – accidentally tasting some of the blood he had spit out before – as he blindly flipped the kunai around behind his back so he could try to get his arms loose. Because of the way they were bound, he had to get through the cuffs before he could slice through the rope.

Hopefully the weapon was sharp enough to cut through small chain links.

As his fingers worked, Rogue repositioned himself so that his knees were trapping the other's arms against the ground, preventing them from moving.

Rogue couldn't help but cough as he smirked, the thick liquid running down his neck. "You'll see…what it…feels like…to die…at least…once…" Feeling the chain snap, a chuckle escaped his stained lips. "You're lucky dude… Unlike me…who was practically dying…every time you gave…a command, you just…have to go through it…a single time." The rope was ripping now, and teal orbs sharpened. "Lucky _bastard._ "

White furred ears perked when they heard groaning. Rogue paused in his actions to look over and see Penumbra writhing on the ground, slowly but surely waking up. He had limited time now to do what he wanted. The bat quickly went back to work, picking up the pace.

When the last of the rope was cut, Rogue rubbed his abused limbs, seeing the redness and marks left by the restraints.

However, hearing how the groaning was getting louder and stronger, that bat swiftly aimed at his target. Both of his hands were clenched around the handle of the kunai, the weapon ready to plunge and destroy.

Rogue grinned.

Now this… _this_ was what the chameleon deserved.

Screams of agony pierced the air as the bat stabbed, slicing through like a hot knife through butter. Laughter soon joined with the sounds of torture, Rogue pulling the kunai out and bringing it back down.

Again.

And again.

And again.

The bat threw the bloodied metal away when the left side of Espio's face was mangled enough for him, mush floating around in the socket where an eyeball should have been. The chameleon was barely moving underneath him, paralyzed with the pain. His mouth was moving, but nothing intelligent was coming out. A single amber orb was staring at Rogue, swirling with many emotions, the most prominent one was fear.

Of course. Rogue wouldn't want it any other way.

The white Mobian gave a twitchy smile before wrapping his dirty hands around the reptile's throat. He leaned forward so Espio didn't have anywhere to look but at him.

Rogue flashed his stained teeth, his smirk anything but friendly. "Hey man…you alright? It's just…pain… If you can't...handle it, well…" Espio began to shake his head, but Rogue ignored it, beginning to squeeze. "Fortunately for you…it'll be over soon…yeah…?"

The chameleon's only response was a labored wheezing.

Rogue pushed harder, inwardly snickering.

 _The guys are so gonna worship me for this._

* * *

Shadow woke up to blood curdling screams.

Red eyes flew open as he was torn away from the state between being unconscious and awake. For a swift moment, he was confused about where he was and how he got there, but then the memories crashed back into him, making the Ultimate Lifeform quickly sit up.

Shadow hissed under his breath when his body protested that movement, and he glanced down to see burns all over his front. Not only that, but his whole system was sore as well. He frowned as he remembered the flash of heat and pain that came with that unexpected Chaos Blast. He should've _checked_ if Penumbra was fully out, not just assume. Dammit…if the emeralds hadn't been at only half power, who knew what kind of damage his twin would've done.

Only when the screams cut off was when Shadow recalled that they had woken him up in first place.

The Ultimate Lifeform whipped his head around, trying to pinpoint the cause of the choked wheezes filling the clearing now. When he found it, he just stared, like his brain had trouble comprehending what he was seeing. Rogue was sitting on top of Espio, strangling him. And the ninja's eye was…was _gone._

At the sight of the bat's cruel smile, Shadow's mind kicked into gear.

The striped hedgehog began to get up, but a very sharp pain in his leg sent him straight back to the ground, jaw clenched in agony. Shadow looked at his limb and cursed under his breath at the condition of it, his calf bent at a slight angle.

He definitely wasn't skating over there. Feeling the cyan Chaos emerald that had miraculously stayed tucked in his quills, Shadow pulled on its little energy and focused hard on where he wanted to go. The next second, he was kneeling right beside the bat and chameleon.

Surprised teal orbs barely had time to meet with heated rubies before Shadow threw a hasty punch, smashing the winged one's cheek. Rogue went sprawling before rolling and stopping, out cold. Shadow didn't have time to focus on the bat at the moment, for spluttering coughs gained his attention.

Espio was heaving on the ground, face pale as he took in the oxygen he desperately needed. He was staring straight up, face twisted in pain. Shadow had no idea what the ninja was going through, seeing juices run down the left side of Espio's face.

The reptile was panting hard, and Shadow barely heard it when he spoke. "…H-Help…"

Shadow gave him a sharp nod, unsure whether or not the other could actually see him do it, before carefully crawling closer to him. He knew immediately that there was no way to save the eye. Shadow took a deep breath as he placed his fingers around the eye socket. "Just stay still, chameleon." All he could do was heal the flesh under the former organ.

Espio said nothing in response; Shadow could feel him trembling underneath his fingertips.

It was silent in the clearing now. The Ultimate Lifeform went slow so he didn't make any mistakes, and so he could make the most out of the limit energy the emerald could give him for this kind of injury.

Shadow's gaze flickered over at the still Rogue, whose breaths were visibly ragged. He knew that he should be mad, furious even. But he couldn't bring himself to that, because if he had been in Rogue's position…he would've done the exact same. The chameleon would've been dead.

He just didn't know if the others would share his opinion.

Shadow's ears twitched when they heard shuffling behind them, followed by low moans. He turned his head to see both Sonic and Boom rousing from their forced sleep.

Sonic cautiously pushed himself up to his knees, rubbing his head as he blinked his eyes open. "Jeez…" he sighed out. "What hit me?" The hero experimentally touched different parts of his body, wincing. "Or should I say burned me?"

"What do you effing think?" Boom bit out as he gently got to his feet, keeping his hands off himself. "That damn pet blasted us! I _swear_ when I see that asshole again…both of them…!"

Sonic nodded as he stood up, softly brushing some burned hairs off of his body. "Yeah…"

Shadow returned his gaze to Espio as they kept talking.

"Hey…did you hear screaming earlier? Or was I imagining it?"

"You heard that too? Damn. It…" There was a pause, and Shadow figured that Boom had finally saw him. "Stripes?"

The Ultimate Lifeform peered over his shoulder to see the duo jogging over. When they got close enough to notice the damage, Sonic nearly gagged while Boom gritted his teeth.

"What…What happened?" Sonic asked after forcing back down what threatened to come up.

"Did that blast drop your fucking IQ?" Boom growled, gesturing violently at the downed reptile. "Penumbra must've did it! The little shit didn't think that surprising us was enough!"

"Well _sorry_ for asking!" Sonic retorted with a weak glare, complexion still a bit green.

Shadow shook his head, feeling the warmth flow from his fingers to the horrid wound. "You're wrong. Penumbra didn't do it."

Boom furrowed his brow. "The hell? Then who-" The Ultimate Lifeform simply bobbed his head over in Rogue's direction. The two pairs of emerald irises widened at the sight of the bloodied bat, arms free. Boom's voice was noticeably weaker when he spoke again. "Bat-face…?"

"He… _Rogue_ did this?!" Sonic ran a hand down his face, highly distressed. "But…but _why_?"

" _Think_ about it, Faker." Shadow's voice was sharp. "If you had been kidnapped by Espio, tortured by him, probably know _nothing_ about this twin business, and finally get a chance to do something about him, I'm sure you would've done the same."

"I…wouldn't…"

"Liar," Boom instantly uttered, like he was expecting that answer. "You probably don't have the balls nor hate to do what Bat-face did, but you definitely would've tied him up or somethin'. You can't blame his ass."

"Wha…" Sonic took a have step back, glancing between Boom and Shadow. Rage then radiated from in him waves. "So are you two saying that it's _okay_ that Espio just lost a freakin' eye?!"

Shadow glared at him. "That's _not_ what I'm saying. It was a _mistake_ , Faker."

"A mistake…" Sonic nodded, expression blank. "Well Shads, you losing against evil Espio in your little dream world was a mistake too, right? Look where we are now." The hero gestured to all over the carnage and blood everywhere before turning around and heading for the unconscious Silver.

Shadow watched him go, anger bubbling within. He then calmed himself down – as much as he could – so he didn't interfere with the energy flow. Boom, however, let his irritation show, quills beginning to bristle. "That _jackass_! If he thinks that you are sole reason for this, then he must've gotten hit on the head fucking _hard._ I should-"

"Do nothing." Shadow placated, and Boom scowled at him. The striped hedgie continued before the other could say anything. "Faker isn't used to this. He's not blaming me."

Boom derisively scoffed. "Yeah. Sure."

The striped hedgehog began to move his fingers in tiny circles, messaging the area. Espio slowly closed his other eye, breathing out lightly. Shadow ignored Boom's sarcastic reply. "He's angry, confused, and panicking. If you haven't noticed, things aren't going well for anyone here. Even Faker, the annoying optimist, can see that."

"So when life isn't all sunshine and effing rainbows for the _hero_ , he starts pointing fingers." Boom deadpanned.

"No. He deals. Because it's not ideal to go for a run now to calm himself, and because his little friends aren't around to make him hold his tongue, he runs his mouth without thinking."

Boom just crossed his arms, gazing over at the hero carefully positioning the blindfolded psychic in his arms.

"He'll apologize once he comes back over here."

The blue rodent stifled a snort.

True to Shadow's words, when Sonic trotted back over to the trio, guilt was etched into his features. There was a ghost of a frown on his face. He adjusted Silver's limp body. "Sorry Shads…that was outta line…" Sonic glanced away, sighing. "This is just a lot, y'know? It's not your fault, it's just…"

"I get it, Faker." Shadow cut him off.

Sonic hesitated a bit before saying. "That's good I guess…" The hero then trained his emerald orbs on Espio's mutilated face. "So, how are you holdin' up, Es?"

The ninja didn't bother opening up his eye. "…I've…been better."

Sonic forced a chuckle. "Yeah…Yeah you have."

The conversation lulled as Shadow finished up. He leaned back and managed to sit all the way down without jarring his broken leg. After setting his leg with a subtle flinch, he began to work on himself. "I'm done, chameleon. Sit up if you can, and wipe the rest out. It shouldn't hurt."

"I'm going to get Bat-face," Boom muttered, turning away and going to gather up Rogue.

Shadow observed as Espio did what he was told, shifting to a shifting position and raising shaky fingers to dig out the remnants of his eye. The ninja was silent, an amber iris staring blankly at the ground as he performed the action, watching as the pulp puddled in the blackened grass. Sonic was following the clouds above with his eyes, obviously uncomfortable.

When he was done, he closed the empty socket and wobbly got to his feet. He then focused over to where Boom was getting Rogue.

Sonic saw this. "Are you…mad at him?"

Espio didn't answer immediately. "…No, I'm not. This all circles back to my twin, so I'll save all hostility for him. However, I am…concerned for Rogue."

The hero furrowed his brow. "You're concerned…for him? After what he just… Really?"

The reptile nodded, rubbing his throat lightly and coughing. "I started to slowly wake up when he pinned my arms. I could hear what he was saying. I was still mostly out of it, but I still could make out his words. Because of what he said and how he said it, I believe that whatever my twin did to him is substantial."

Shadow tested his leg when he thought that he was done. There was no pain, from the break at least, so he got back up to his feet. He digested what Espio said. "What did he say?" he asked, looking at the topic of conversation when Boom rejoined them, bat thrown over his shoulder.

"That he was going to let me experience the pain of death at least once." Everyone was staring at the bat know, a multitude of thoughts running through their minds. Espio continued. "And that he basically had many near death experiences because of my twin's commands. He has been through much…possibly too much."

"So you're sayin' that he's crazy or something?" Boom rolled his eyes. "Bull to the shit. Just because-"

"He was laughing the whole time." Espio interrupted him, and the semi-hero's mouth slowly closed. "It was deranged. He may be dangerous." The chameleon then took in Silver's red and white form. "And if Silver has been given the same treatment…"

"A homicidal psychic, huh?" Sonic repositioned Silver, mindful of his own burns. "Not the first time I heard that…"

"We don't know for sure." Shadow pointed out, not wanting anyone to jump to conclusions.

Espio gave a minute nod. "I just wanted to put it out there, so there wouldn't be any more mishaps."

Shadow met the single-eyed gaze. There was another similarity between the doubles now. They would have to prevent any more mix ups. "There won't be." He began to walk away. "Come gather around Omega so we can go back. I'll heal your minor wounds later."

Sonic watched Shadow check over his teammate once the Ultimate Lifeform had gotten over there. Shadow didn't seem too stressed about Omega's condition, so the bot had to be okay. Or could go back to being okay soon, at least.

When Boom went to follow the striped hedgehog, Sonic didn't move for a moment, eying Espio. He took in the injuries the chameleon shared with everyone else, and then lingered on the closed eyelid hiding emptiness.

"We should go before he gets too impatient," Espio said, taking a step forward.

"Wait a sec." The reptile paused midstride, looking back at Sonic with a raised brow. The hero's expression was solemn. "Are you okay?" Espio opened his mouth, but Sonic didn't let him say a word. "Like…are you _really_ okay?"

The ninja's lips closed again, and no words were exchanged for a moment. Sonic couldn't read the other's expression. "I…I'll be fine. It's something…to get used to." A single finger – the slight tremble still noticeable – brushed the left side of the ninja's face. "But for the others, I'm sure that they will be the complete opposite of fine."

Sonic pictured the rest of the group – especially the rest of the Chaotix – finding out what happened, and what he saw wasn't pretty. "Hey, if they get too upset, we can just tell them take you'd make a _great_ pirate for when Halloween rolls around!"

Espio just stared. Then he turned forward, and Sonic believed that the sudden glossiness of the other's eye was nothing but a trick of the light. The ninja began to walk away. "Yeah. We could."

Sonic tried to interpret that weird tone as he followed the chameleon, but he soon gave up as other thoughts troubled his mind.

 _Yeah, this whole attack thing will go over pretty badly, but telling them about Cream will be even worse. And there's no way that I can lighten up that situation…_

The azure speedster inwardly sighed.

 _And with the Master Emerald…I just hope that no one gets hurt when Knuckles starts swinging._

* * *

Mephiles couldn't believe that he was actually doing this. Yes, he knew that it was to basically save the _lives_ of two innocent – well, one not so much – Mobians, but he still couldn't wrap his head around the insanity of it. If it had been anyone else playing the hero, he wouldn't have thought twice about it, but it was _him_ doing the acting. Not even a month ago, Mephy had been living in the streets getting beat up, and now he was on a risky and extremely dangerous rescue mission?

His past self would've thought that it was a really funny joke.

But as he gazed out from the shadow he was submerged in, silently watching as Penumbra maneuvered his way through the trees, Mephiles knew that this was no joke. This was reality. He was going to save Nummy. He was going to save this world's Cream… He had no choice but to. He refused to let another bunny die. Not again.

Their surroundings were almost a blur as they went. Mephy stayed completely out of sight the whole time, afraid that Penumbra would sniff him out as soon as the tips of his ears met the open air again. He'd seen what the striped hedgehog could do. Thinking about the group that he had left behind made him cringe. That blast looked catastrophic. If Mephiles hadn't been biding his time at the edge of the clearing, he surely would've been right in the middle of that massive heat…

He forced himself to relax. They would be alright. No one looked…dead before he left. They're fine.

Oh Chaos, let them be fine…

Mephiles was thrown out of his musings when Penumbra began to drastically slow down. The other decreased to a walking pace right before moving a thick tree branch out of the way. Once the leaves on the limb were pushed to the side, Espio, Eggman, and Metal were revealed, just gathered together amongst the trees. Were they all waiting for Penumbra? They cared that much about him to do so?

Mephy wasn't sure, because it seemed like a conversation between the chameleon and the blue bot had cut off right as Nummy showed himself, and he didn't know what that meant.

Espio looked the striped hedgehog up and down as the rodent crawled closer, ears folded, head down, being as submissive as possible. An amber iris zoned in on the nasty bruise on his head. "What happened to you?"

A clawed hand gently touched the dark splotch, a hiss escaping the hedgie's lips. "Attacked," he answered.

Espio cocked his head a bit before gazing at the area behind Nummy, seeming to look for something. "Shadow and the others are gone, right? You're not being followed?" Penumbra dipped his head in a nod, and Espio grinned. "Good. Now Cream gets to live to see another day." The reptile, who was still standing in the same hovercraft that Eggman was, patted the human on the shoulder, his other hand on the Master Emerald propped up on the flying vehicle. "It's time for us to go." He glanced over to Metal. "Remember the plan."

"Are you implying that I would forget? I will not stand for such insults to my intelligence," the not-Sonic replied, red opticals flashing.

"Calm down." Espio rolled his eye. "You're always ready to fight, like a blue hedgehog I know."

"Do _not_ compare me to any Sonics." Metal's voice could easily be interpreted as a growl. "Do it again, and you shall meet your end."

"See? You just proved my point even more." The chameleon gave a smirk before nodding at the doctor, and the two flew out of sight.

Mephiles began to panic.

 _Why are they all splitting up? Where in the world are Espio and Eggman going? Are they going back to where Cream is? Am I messing this whole thing up already?!_

Before Mephy started to hyperventilate, Penumbra's voice rung out. "Where…?"

"They are going to the new base. We are going back to the old one." Metal Sonic turned his back to Nummy as he continued to speak. "No more questions. Just follow me." The mech activated his jet pack and zoomed off. A second barely passed before Penumbra kicked up dust, easily catching and keeping up with the jetting robot.

Still positioned in the hedgehog's shadow, Mephiles' heart rate was slowly decreasing back to normal. Everything was good. Metal was taking them back to the 'old base', so that meant the one that they had come from…hopefully. And if Penumbra was going there, then Cream had to be trapped there. They wouldn't put two captives in different bases right? Right. That would be stupid.

Mephiles doubted his thoughts all the way the whole trip.

During most of their journey, they were surrounded by so much green that it was a severe shock to the system when they burst out of the woods and headed straight for an obviously abandoned city. Buildings were crumbling, asphalt was ruined, and vines were constricted many of the man-made structures.

Mephy made sure to absorb as much as he could as they entered the city's limits, Metal leading the way to the mysterious base.

The shadow 'hog had been expecting some kind of grand and shiny structure that screamed 'I'm filled with science and evil', so when Metal Sonic turned right into a nearly collapsed skyscraper, Mephiles was thrown for another loop.

As Metal opened up a trap door in the floor, Mephy realized that he had forgotten that he was dealing with a _doctor_ , a very sentient _robot_ , and an evil _mastermind_. What a team.

Well, at least two-thirds of that team weren't there…at the moment. That was reassuring.

As they descended down a narrow corridor with stairs, Mephiles could see that there was a metallic door coming up with a keypad to the side of it. Thinking that this whole rescuing thing might not be so hard after all, he watched as Metal put in a ten-digit code, the door sliding open afterwards. 07734-77345. He committed those numbers to memory.

The shadow 'hog looked around as they traversed the halls of the underground lab, taking in the tiled floors and metal walls and knowing already that this place would be a maze for an outsider like himself.

It wasn't long before they came to a door that Penumbra seemed to recognize. The hedgehog was eager to go inside while Metal scanned his hand on the panel… Wait. Scanned his hand? Mephiles swallowed thickly at the sight of the device, thinking that he had just horribly jinxed himself. Just how in the heck was he going to get the scanner to accept _his_ hand?

That question remained unanswered as the door opened, and Penumbra bounded forward without any hesitation. Mephiles, inside the somewhat small room as well, would've frozen if he had control of his own movements at the sight of the evil Omega sitting right there in the middle of the floor, his gun pointing at something. The hedgehog's breath hitched when he saw the mech's target.

It was the other Cream. Mephiles' heart went out to the bunny as she cowered against the far wall, trembling badly. Her wide chocolate irises were filled with terror as her whimpers filled the air. She didn't deserve this. No one deserved this.

Despite how frightened the rabbit was, she unexpectedly brightened up at the sight of Penumbra. Mephiles watched in slight confusion as Nummy bounded over and wrapped his arms around Cream, comforting her. Mephy couldn't believe it. He understood that the red striped hedgehog was sorry about attack Shadow and the others…but to have this other side to him? It was completely opposite of what he saw before!

Hidden reptilian green irises drifted over to the two bots, hating them and that chameleon even more knowing that they had been manipulating Shadow's twin. He would hate Eggman too if it didn't seem like he was nothing but another tool for Espio to use.

"I TAKE IT THAT THE MISSION WAS A SUCCESS?"

"Your guess is correct," Metal Sonic responded to Omega, gesturing to the latter's arm. "You can put that away now. We have other things to accomplish."

"WHERE IS MASTER ESPIO?" Omega asked, the gun disappearing only to be replaced with metallic fingers.

"I will tell you later." Metal turned toward the door. "The less the captives know, the better."

"IT DOES NOT MATTER IF THEY KNOW. THEY CANNOT INTERFERE."

Mephy could feel the annoyance radiating off the blue bot. "Just follow me before I dismantle you."

"I WOULD LIKE YOU SEE YOU TRY."Omega marched his way toward the exit, brushing past Metal. "YOU WILL BE A PILE OF SCRAPS ON THE GROUND."

The Sonic lookalike watched him leave before gazing back at Penumbra, not reacting to the low warning growl he received. "We will come back for you later." He then left, the door sliding closed.

Mephiles strained his hearing, the footsteps fading away in the background. Alright, they were gone. He then searched all around the room they were in, wondering if there were any cameras in there. He didn't see anything, so he was hoping for the best.

"What happened to you Mr. Penumbra?"

Blinking in shock, Mephy focused on the now separated duo. Cream was peering at the bruise on the hedgehog's head, gaze overflowing with concern. Mephiles could instantly spot the differences between the Creams, this one's voice being softer and more emotional. Especially the latter when Nummy winced when the bunny brushed over the injury, and her eyes started to fill up with tears.

She was more a child than her counterpart, and that made this situation all the worse.

In response to the girl's question, Penumbra's face fell and he looked away, saying nothing.

"Tell me, please?" Cream begged, brown orbs moistening up. "Was it…Was it them? Are the bad guys hurting you?" Nummy didn't respond again, just looking down at the tiled floor. However, at the sound of sniffing, maroon eyes snapped back up to Cream, who was rubbing her now wet face. "I-I want…" She let out a choked sob. "I want to g-go home…"

Penumbra gathered the bunny up in his arms again, hugging her as she cried on his shoulder. Mephiles just watched in sadness as she dug her face into the crook of his neck. Nummy's voice was quiet and soothing. "No cry, please?" He gently pushed her head up so he could wipe away her streaming tears. "You say Sonic is get…getting us. Believe. Okay?"

Cream sniffed again before nodding. "I do think that he's coming but…but he's t-taking a long time…"

Guilt etched into Nummy's features as he answered, "Patient."

The bunny just bobbed her head again before leaning on the striped hedgehog a second time. Penumbra got comfortable, wrapping his arms around her and resting his chin on top of her head, gazing in sorrow at the far wall.

Mephiles had to take a moment to grieve those two poor souls. Along with Silver and Rogue, they had been victims of that corrupted chameleon's scheme. That was going to end right here and right now.

He wasn't Sonic, but he didn't think that they would care.

As subtly as possible, Mephiles detached himself from Nummy's shadow and slowly crept over to put a respectable distance between him and the duo. He didn't want to scare them (and if Penumbra decided to be unpredictable, then he had time to melt back into the ground).

After mentally preparing himself, the shadow 'hog cautiously lifted his body out of the darkness, keeping his eyes on the ones before him. At first, Penumbra didn't notice him, but when all of his upper half appeared, Nummy's shocked gaze met his.

Mephiles smiled sheepishly as he finally stepped fully out, hoping that his expression was innocent enough and that the other hedgehog remembered him. Nummy's body was tense, and Mephy couldn't tell what he was thinking.

It was when Mephiles gave a small wave that Penumbra cocked his head, recognition shining in those maroon orbs. He was cautious at first. "…Friend?" Cream had pulled herself away from him to gaze up at Nummy in confusion – not knowing about Mephiles yet – but the wilder hedgehog's attention never left the newcomer.

Thinking that he was meant to answer the question thrown at him, Mephy's grin widened as he nodded.

Penumbra blinked before smiling in glee. "Friend!" He finally glanced down to a perplexed rabbit and pointed over to Mephiles. "Cream! Friend! He come!"

"What…?" Cream peered over her shoulder to follow the rodent's finger, and gasped when her gaze landed on the shadow 'hog. She hopped out of Penumbra's grip, expression cautious but hopeful. "H-Hi!" She quickly wiped the rest of her tears away; her eyes were still red. "Who a-are you?"

Mephiles automatically held out a hand, but paused in his action when his brain caught up. He warily glanced over at Penumbra, who may be protective, and only saw an expectant expression on his face. Nothing dangerous, so he held his hand out fully.

Cream hesitated for a second before approaching him and putting her hand in his. He smiled reassuringly at her before making her palm face up. With a finger, he traced out, "M-e-p-h-i-l-e-s."

"Meph…iles?" she tested out, and he nodded in affirmation. Her hand slipped out of Mephy's as she looked at the other striped hedgie. "Mr. Penumbra, he's your friend?"

"Yes!" he beamed, "Meph…Mephiles is friend!"

A smile began to grow on Cream's muzzle. She faced the shadow 'hog again. "I-I'm glad that you two know each other! But…" The expression waned a bit, her brow subtly furrowing. "But why are you here Mr. Mephiles? Did…Did they catch you too?"

 _Chaos, she doesn't need to be in the middle of this. She needs to be home. I need to get her and Penumbra out of here as soon as possible,_ Mephy thought before shaking his head. Hoping that she would understand, he mouthed out, "Save you."

Cream pursed her lips as the gears turned in her head. "Save…you…?" Then her face lit up like a light. "Save you? Like save me? Save _us_?" Mephiles didn't get a chance to respond before the bunny was jumping up and down. "You're going to save us! Mr. Penumbra, he's going to save us!"

Said hedgehog looked like he wanted to be just as happy as Cream, but he seemed confused. "…Save?"

She smiled at him. "Get us out! He's going to get us out!"

"Get out?" Apparently Penumbra finally understood because he clapped his hands in joy. Mephiles couldn't say that he was used to all of that striped hedgehog's smiles. Shadow was almost the complete opposite of his twin (almost because they both could be scary when they wanted to), and he doubted that any of Shadow's _friends_ had seen him smile.

All signs of sadness on the little bunny were gone by this point. "Do you like hugs Mr. Mephiles?"

The shadow hedgie's mind reeled, not expecting that question at all. At a loss, he just shrugged, nodding a bit. Then – again, unexpectedly – Cream jumped up and gave him a tight hug, arms wrapped around his neck.

"I'm so happy!" She laughed in his ear as Mephiles hugged her back if only to keep her from falling to the ground. He soon started to silently chuckle as well, her mirth extremely contagious. It wasn't long before Penumbra came over and joined in, arms around both hedgehog and rabbit. His laughs were foreign to Mephy's ears.

"Thank you," Nummy whispered, sincerity clear in his tone.

Mephiles smiled, and knew that he definitely couldn't mess this up now.

Penumbra eventually pulled away, and Cream dropped back down. "So how are you going to do it?" the latter asked, eyes glistening.

Mephy tapped his chin before pointing over to the door. Then he mouthed, "Password."

"Door? And password?" Cream repeated slowly. "You're going to find a password for the door?" He communicated a yes, and she was ready to celebrate, but a thought came to her. "Wait, how are you going to get out? And…how did you get in?"

Mephiles held up a finger before melting into a shadow and quickly making circles around the two. When he reappeared, Cream's jaw was basically on the floor. "That's so amazing! You can go anywhere!"

 _Mostly…but yeah._ The blue striped hedgehog gazed at the door, took a deep breath, and made his way towards it.

"Be careful, okay?" Cream called to him. Mephiles nodded at her. He was planning to be.

"Back soon?" Penumbra asked, and the shadow 'hog gave him a brief thumb's up.

Nummy frowned up at that action until Cream said, "That means that he will!" Then the red and black mammal was happy again, giving him a thumb's up back.

Mephiles snickered before facing the sliding piece of metal. Utilizing his ability, he slithered under the door and came back together on the other side when he saw that the coast was clear. He heard the duo talking excitedly inside and he couldn't help the elation that filled him. He was _doing_ something, unlike…unlike last time. He wasn't going to stand on the sidelines anymore.

Confidence growing, Mephy examined the scanner just in case there was a part on it where he could put in a code. Unfortunately, there wasn't. Maybe…Maybe there was somewhere he could make his hand recognizable. An office? Or something like that? That was the only plan he had, and he was putting it into action. He glanced both ways down the hall before choosing one path. He phased into the tiles and wished himself luck.

Because he sure needed it.

* * *

 **Next chapter…tensions are high!**


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co. If I did, this story would have been made into a game. T rated, of course ;)**

 **A/N- Heya guys! Ready for a new chapter? Hopefully it doesn't have any typos in it, because I know I've gotten sorta lazy in proofreading. Sorry 'bout that!**

 **Chapter 29- City escape**

"Something went wrong."

Tails paused in the middle of tinkering with some controls on his plane to send Knuckles an inquisitive look. "Why do you think so?"

The red guardian was leaning on the Tornado, frowning up at the ceiling of the garage. His arms were crossed, and his stance was tensed. "They've been gone for too long."

"It hasn't been that long…"

"Tails. Both of the Charmys had fallen asleep in the front yard because they had _tired themselves out_. If that doesn't ring any alarms, I don't know what will."

The kit frowned up a tad before shaking his head. "Well you know that Sonic never runs on a set schedule." He continued his work on the aircraft, trying to stay positive despite the sinking sun outside. "And now that there's two of them…"

The guardian resisted rolling his eyes. "Tch. _Don't_ remind me… He's worse than Sonic and Shadow put together. Throw Eggman in there too while I'm at it."

"He's not…" Tails trailed off, wincing at the memory of the unfortunate punch he had received from said hedgehog. As much as he wanted to finish his thought, he just couldn't.

"He isn't _what_ Tails? He isn't that bad?" Knuckles gave the fox a pointed look. "Right, because it isn't that bad to tell off _Vanilla._ "

Tails could agree that the blue speedster's words had been harsh, especially considering what the rabbit was going through. But… "Everyone's stressed Knuckles, even _our_ Sonic. Everybody's got to have a breaking point-"

"Yeah? Well Shadow's little annoyance seems to be constantly at his." Knuckles turned around to watch Tails move around in the cockpit. A mitt absently tapped on the painted metal. "Why in the heck are you defending him anyway?"

The kit gave him a meek shrug and a similar smile. "Force of habit."

The red echidna scoffed. "Right." His tone turned more serious as he went back to his previous topic. "But as I was saying before, a good chunk of time has passed since they left. You're telling me that you're not worried at all?"

"I didn't say that." Tails bit his bottom lip, namesakes twitching behind him. "I'm just trying to not let it get to me, y'know? I mean, Shadow, Espio, Omega, and _two_ Sonic's went. They're fine."

If Knuckles detected the waver in his voice, the echidna didn't show it. He simply pursed his lips. "Anything could happen Tails. If they aren't back by sun down, we're going after them."

"How?" Tails asked, not exactly opposing the newly formed plan. "You can feel the Master Emerald?"

Knuckles shook his head. "No, it's too far away. But we know where they are _supposed_ to be, and that's a start."

The young genius glanced out of the nearest window to see the long and dark shadows along the ground, growing in length every minute. Tails tore his gaze from the outside world to his current task, but not before throwing Knuckles a more solid grin. "They'll be back any minute; I know they are! I bet if they didn't have the Master Emerald on them, you wouldn't be as concerned, would you?"

Before the guardian could hastily defend himself, the door connecting the garage to the main house creaked open. Both fox and echidna switched their attentions to the pink head popping in. Jade irises were looking everywhere but at them.

Tails tilted his head at the pinkette. "Oh hey…" He was about ninety percent about this. He was pretty sure he knew who this one was at first glance. "Rosy! Are you looking for something?"

"Actually someone…" The hedgehog eventually focused on the two by the plane, expression discouraged. "And he's not in here. Have any of you seen Mephy?"

"Mephiles?" Knuckles shook his head. "Nope. Haven't seen him."

"Me neither…" Tails tapped his chin. "He's not in the house or the yard?"

"No!" Rosy played with a loose thread on her dress, her brow furrowed. "Where could he-"

"Go a bit farther out, or just wait for him to show up," Knuckles provided, "He's probably taking a walk to keep his mind off of all that's happening."

"Yeah I wouldn't worry," the kit said genially, "Mephiles could be a bit tricky to find if he doesn't want to be found."

"Understatement of the century…" Knuckles muttered under his breath, and Tails let out a muffled chuckle.

Rosy looked between the duo with a risen brow, but didn't comment on their seemingly inside joke. "You're right. He's gotta show up again sometime, probably when the others get back." Now she had an expectant expression on her face. "Which is…?"

"We don't-"

"Soon." Tails gave Knuckles a look, in which the echidna just wordlessly huffed in response. The fox returned his gaze onto the pinkette. "They should be here soon."

Rosy nodded. "That's good. Imma go back inside. Have fun working on your plane Tails!"

The bi-tailed Mobian mock-saluted her. "Will do!" She giggled before her head disappeared, the door closing with a soft click.

Tails stared at the place she had been standing for a moment longer. Then an amused grin grew on his muzzle as he focused back on the dashboard in front of him. "All of the others being here will sure make things interesting."

"Oh it'll be interesting alright." Knuckles grunted out in a tone that Tails couldn't decipher. The kit passed it off as the guardian being a grump again – Knux would have to deal with _two_ bats soon enough – and got back to work as the echidna stood in silence.

No words were exchanged between the two for about ten minutes, the garage itself quiet except for the occasional clang and clink. However, the silence was broken when the garage door opened a second time, revealing a fed-up Rouge. She sauntered up to the duo, obvious in wanting to converse.

The bat sighed exasperatedly when she sat on one of the Tornado's wings, leaning back on her hands. "Talking to your twin is like talking to a brick wall. He makes it seem like what he said to you filled his word quota for the next week."

The male pair automatically knew which twin she was referring to. Knuckles frowned at the mental image of his doppelganger. "I honestly don't doubt it if that was actually the case."

Rouge swung her legs alternately back and forth. "Hey, why do _you_ sound angry hon? _I'm_ the one who just got ignored."

"He just bothers me, bat-girl. Him and the other Sonic." Knuckles ruffled his dreads with a single hand. "I've already got you and Sonic on occasion to bother me, I don't need two _more._ "

"Well I'm just _flattered_." Rouge responded sarcastically before smirking. "But don't forget, _my_ double is going to get here pretty soon. I'd _love_ it if he has the same bother-Knuckles hobby that I do."

The guardian just covered his face with his palms and groaned loudly.

Tails laughed while the bat seemed quite entertained. The kit, after controlling his mirth, turned to the winged Mobian. "Speaking of your twin, are you ready to meet him?"

Rouge flipped a hand. "What's to get ready for? From what I've heard, he's practically me…minus some key traits."

Knuckles glanced away when she gestured to her chest. "Ugh, I pray to Chaos that you two hate each other."

"Wishful thinking," she singsonged as she wiped off a scuff on her boot. "Ever heard that birds of a feather flock together?"

"I don't see any feathers on you," Knuckles curtly responded.

"I've got wings hon." Rouge flapped said appendages. "And that's close enough."

Tails opened his mouth to comment, but his words got drowned out when screams sounded from outside. "What's going on?!"

Knuckles, instantly alerted, ran towards the button on the wall that opened the large automatic garage door that the Tornado frequently entered. "Something's happening out there!"

"Is it an attack?" Rouge questioned as she fluttered her wings and flew over to the rising metal.

Tails swiftly joined her, hovering with his namesakes. "I hope not…"

The trio barely waited for the door to be halfway up before they ducked under and ran out into the open. What they saw froze them right in their tracks. They weren't the only ones outside who were seeing the shocking sight. Everyone else either had already been in the yard, or they had come running out as well at the screams that apparently came from both Amy and Rosy.

Tails couldn't blame them for their outbursts, since he barely could withhold the gasp that escaped his gaping mouth.

Shadow's group was back…but not in the same condition they were in when they left.

There obviously had been some kind of fight. Everyone was hurt in some way, the most common that Tails could see were terrible looking burns. Well, on the living ones at least. The young genius saw Omega laying down on the ground, unmoving, with both of his arms torn off and piled up beside the unresponsive mech. Some of the bot's metal were melted in places.

Yes, the burns and places where heat had clearly come in contact were the most common injury, but not the most noticeable one in the small group. Tails had done a double take when his sapphire gaze had landed on Espio, the chameleon having only one eye open. That lone amber iris was staring blankly forward, and the kit came to a conclusion he didn't want to be real.

Espio had lost an eye.

 _How? Why? Who…?_

But the fox's mind refused to guess at those answers for almost all processes were stopped when the visuals of the rescued captives were taken in. Blood. There was blood everywhere on them. If Tails didn't already know that Silver was supposed to be white, there would be no way to tell with how much red was caked on him. Sonic was holding the psychic slightly out to avoid getting stained, but it was futile.

The formerly white hedgehog was also cuffed and blindfolded, and there were irritated bald spots where quills had been pulled out. Tails couldn't imagine what he and Rou…Rogue had to go through. The kit could only see half of the bat's body due to the other Sonic's positioning, but he didn't need full sight of the winged Mobian's body to tell that his wounds were horrific as well.

 _What kind of torture did Eggman and the other Espio put them through?_ Tails' breath then hitched his in throat. _What kind of torture did they put_ _ **Cream**_ _through?!_

The kit searched for the tan bunny and grew confused when he couldn't spot her among the others. She wasn't there…along with the Master Emerald. So many things were wrong right now, and he couldn't focus on one.

He opened his mouth, but no words passed his lips. He didn't know what question to ask; there were so many whirling around in his head. Tails eventually forced out, "What…What happened?"

Sonic glanced over at him, and the blue one's twitchy smile didn't quite reach those emeralds void of mirth. The hero readjusted the psychic in his grip, trying to keep from dropping him. "Well uh…You gotta be more specific there buddy."

Those words snapped everyone else out their shocked stupors, and many voices rang out.

"What attacked you guys?"

"What happened to Silver and Rogue?"

"Why in the world does Espio only have _one eye?!_ "

"Where's the Master Emerald?!"

"…Where's Cream…?"

Shadow just stood there for a bit after a tense silence blanketed the group again. Red irises swept the Mobians in front of him, noticing that some were gazing at him expectantly, some were focused on Sonic, and some were glancing worriedly between Rogue, Silver, and Espio.

After a moment, he decided to answer the most sensitive subject first. The Ultimate Lifeform zeroed in on Vanilla, whose trembles weren't difficult to see. The mother was standing amongst the others, her moist brown orbs flickering everywhere before lingering on Sonic for a second, eventually locking with Shadow's gaze.

His voice was soft as he spoke. "They didn't bring her."

Vanilla gasped, along with most of the others. Tears began to well up in her eyes, and anyone could sense a breakdown approaching. "What…? They…" Her focus switched to Sonic again.

The blue speedster regrettably shook his head. "They…They didn't bring Cream." He gestured to the bloody bat and psychic. "Just…"

The dam broke. Water streamed down Vanilla's face as she hid her head in her hands, shoulders shaking from the force of her sobs. Amy held out a hand to comfort her, but the mother had backed away and ran into the house before any contact was made. Concerned gazes followed her until she disappeared inside, but no one else physically moved.

Amy bit her lip, her own jade orbs threatening to overflow. "Why w-wasn't she there? Did they…did they k-"

"No!" Sonic cut her off abruptly, not even wanting to hear that word. He didn't want it spoken into existence. "No, no she isn't dead, Ames. They still have her at whatever lab they came from."

"And that's why we don't have the Master Emerald either." Espio continued cautiously, speaking directly to Knuckles' half worried and half furious form. When the echidna zoned in on him, he knew that the guardian wasn't actually looking at him, but at his blatant handicap. He didn't know how soon he would get used to that. The chameleon cleared his throat for his voice was a bit hoarse, and that brought on dull pain from his neck. "It was either give the jewel up, or they have the other Omega take Cream's life back at their home base. The choice was easy."

Knuckles' jaw was set, his fingers clenching and unclenching. Then he let out a rage-filled roar before furiously punching the ground, making grass blades and dirt fly. When he eventually stopped attacking the earth, he remained on his knees, panting harshly. He was glaring downward, not saying a word.

"How…" After giving his echidna friend a sympathetic look, Tails regathered his thoughts and asked, "How are we going to get Cream – and the Master Emerald – back if we don't know where they went?"

Shadow glanced over to the two speedsters, who were both holding fragile cargo. "Rogue and Silver were held hostage. They should know where to go. When they wake up, they can show us the way."

"Yeah," Boom scoffed, jouncing Rogue slightly, " _After_ we find out if this jackass is still stab-happy."

A multitude of eyes widened in response, and Sonic groaned as he gave his twin a pointed look. " _Boom!_ "

" _Don't_ call me that," the doppelganger growled in response before throwing his double a glare. "And what? They're gonna find out eventually! Do you _want_ another chameleon accident?"

"Wait….stab-happy?" A frown grew on Vector's face as he put the puzzle pieces together, brow creasing in thought. "Chameleon accident?" The reptile went slack jawed as the conclusion came to him, and he wildly pointed at the unconscious bat. " _He_ took Espio's eye out?!"

Charmy – who was hovering right beside him – covered his mouth in shock. The bee then flew over to Espio, eyes watering. "He made you half blind?" The chameleon exhaled softly, nodding once. The bee whined. "I…I thought it was your evil twin that did it! Is…Is Rogue evil?!"

"No, alright? _No._ " VC stepped up and crossed his arms, shaking his head like he couldn't believe a word. "None of that makes sense! Why in the heck would Rogue do that? I've known him for a _long_ time and he wouldn't _ever_ do that! You all… You all had to be delusional or somethin'!"

"I'm with VC!" Rosy went to the croc's side, pursing her lips as she looked at Vector. "Rogue wouldn't do anything like that! He's nice and…and…" She trailed off once she noticed the expression Shadow was giving her.

His tone was inarguable. "He did it, no matter what you all believe. I saw him do it, and I had to stop him before…he could go any further. He's not evil, just-"

"I don't give a crap what he is!" Vector shouted, interrupting him. His cheeks were red with anger. "Evil or not, he still _nearly blinded_ one of my closest friends!" The croc took a threatening stride forward, pounding his right fist in his left palm. "I'm gonna-!"

"Stop!" Vector barely got a chance to respond to that shout before his arm was grabbed and pulled back by a bee. CB's wings were working hard not to let the croc proceed forward. "You can't hurt him!"

Before the large reptile knew it, another pair of hands were gripping his other wrist. TT was hovering in the air, attempting to keep him still as well. "I-I'm sure it was just an accident…"

A tick mark formed on Vector's forehead. "I don't CARE! I'm – Gah!"

There was a less-than-pleasurable grasp on his tail that he knew was going to leave a bruise. He whipped his head around to see Red holding up his appendage. The echidna sighed. "Can you just quit? I'll tackle you if I have to, but I don't _want_ to have to."

"WHAT?" Vector squawked, "Don't any of you CARE that-"

"It's not that they don't care, Vector." Espio walked over to his friend and coworker, and the trio holding the croc back let him go since there was no danger of him rampaging at the moment. A single amber iris bored into two lemon-colored ones. "They're saying that it is an accident. A mistake. Which it was. I don't blame him."

The reptile blinked before deflating. He placed his hands on Espio's shoulders, shaking him a bit. "You don't? But just look at your face-!"

"He was doing what he thought was best," the chameleon muttered, "I would've done the same."

"But but but... That's different!" Charmy sputtered out as he circled around them. "He…! But you…"

"There's no difference," Espio said to the bee before returning to Vector. "Calm down. I'm fine."

There was a scowl on the croc's face before the expression morphed into a defeated one. He folded his arms and looked away. "I really hate you, you know that?"

"No you don't," Espio retorted easily.

"I'm glad that went over well," Rouge commented before teal orbs drifted over to her twin, taking in his appearance. She tilted her head a bit as she stared at Shadow. "But about my darling double being 'stab-happy'…?"

The Ultimate Lifeform glanced askance at Boom. "He shouldn't attack anyone else. The only one here in possible danger is Espio, and that will quickly be taken care of when we explain everything to him."

"Hmm…" Rouge hummed as her attention drifted off of Rogue and back onto the rescuers themselves. She rose a slightly concerned brow at Omega's condition. He looked bad, but she knew that a little touch up would have him as good as new. "Now that we know the answers about Cream and this Espio…what exactly happened to all of you? Did Eggman set off a bomb or something?"

Boom glowered. "Might as fucking well have."

Sonic sent him a sour look before shaking his head at the female bat. "Egghead didn't do anything! I think he's-"

"Wait so that _rotten reptile_ actually _bombed_ you?!" Knuckles really needed to pound that chameleon's face in. Twenty times over.

Sonic tapped his foot twice, unsure on whether to give the correct information. "Uh…kinda…"

"What in the hell is that supposed to-"

"That Espio was commanding Penumbra." Shadow cut in, ripping the metaphorical band-aid off. There was nothing but silence as he continued. "As he, Eggman, and Metal Sonic escaped with the Master Emerald, he told Penumbra to keep us from following. He blasted us."

"…Oh _Chaos…_ " Rosy gulped in disbelief. "He has Nummy too…"

"No no no no!" CB cried out. "What are we gonna do?! Evil Espio's teaching Nummy bad things!"

"This situation just went from bad, to the _absolute_ worst," Red drawled out, taking a deep breath.

"You can say that again!" VC waved his arms frantically in the air. "If he can take ALL OF YOU ON, how in the world are we gonna save him and Cream?!"

"Carefully," Shadow replied smoothly, "He took all of us by surprise the first time."

"He sure as hell _not_ gonna do that again," Boom snorted, "I'll kick his ass 'til next week."

"And then we'll save Cream and give the other Espio a little surprise of our own!" Sonic added on, his smile more genuine now.

The mood of the group had lifted somewhat, but before anyone could respond to Sonic's chipper attitude, there was coughing coming from Boom's direction. Said speedster grimaced when he felt liquid slide down his back and leg. Noticing how Rogue's chest was constricting, Boom swiftly took the bat off his shoulder and laid him down on the ground, face up.

"Oh my gosh!" Rosy ran over to Rogue's side, frantic. "Is he okay?"

Shadow was the second to stand over him. Rubies narrowed as the bat continued to cough, red streaming out of the sides of his mouth. Quickly taking action, the striped hedgie bent down and turned the bat on his side so he wouldn't choke on his own blood. Shadow saw the rest of the others gather around him.

"There's blood in his lungs," he said as he carefully felt around the bat's chest. The coughing continued and was getting harsher. The grass beneath Rogue's head was being stained. His eyes were still closed however. Shadow gritted his teeth until he felt something marginally give under his touch. "He has a broken rib." Pulling from the Chaos emerald in his quills, he began to heal.

Rogue's coughing eventually subsided, and blood stopped flowing out of his mouth. His breathing evened out.

Rouge waited and waited, but nothing happened. "Is he going to wake up?"

"Later," Shadow answered as he leaned back, "That was just a bodily reaction. He isn't back yet. I need to check him for more injuries however, and favorably not where he can easily get infection." He said, referring to the unsanitary dirt and grass under the downed bat. Shadow then peered over his shoulder at Silver still held in Sonic's arms. "Makes me wonder what's broken inside of him."

"Well stop wondering and let's go." Red ruffled his dreadlocks, for once stressed. "The faster they're healed the faster they wake up."

Shadow subtly nodded before picking up the bat bridal style, moving towards the open home.

 _The faster they wake up, the faster I can end what I've started._

00

Mephiles slowly slid along the floor up against the wall, making progress down the hallway he was currently in. He wouldn't risk going faster than he was because of the fact that a zipping shadow without a source would be more than a little bit unusual. Sure, a slow shadow without a source was weird too, but at least he wouldn't be as obvious that way.

Mephy saw that there was a large window farther down the hall and wished that it belonged to the main office of the place. After looking behind him, the shadow hedgie picked up the speed a tad. He _did_ want to hurry to get Cream and Penumbra out of this rotten place, but again, he didn't want to get caught.

When the hedgehog slithered below the pane of glass, he strained his hearing to try to detect any telltale signs of anyone approaching, like footsteps or the sound of a jetpack. When there was nothing but silence, Mephiles quickly put himself back together and hastily peeked through the window.

What he saw made his gut drop.

There was blood _everywhere_ in the room. On the ceilings, walls, and the floor. Mephiles refused to imagine what happened here, not wanting to think of the image. As he sunk back into the tiles, all he could think about was how relieved he was that Silver and Rogue had been traded. That room had obviously belonged to one of them, possibly both.

Mephy shivered before heading on.

After turning a few more corners (and believing that he just probably gotten himself lost), multiple voices began echoing off the walls, getting louder and louder. Heartrate increasing, the striped Mobian weighed either to run away from or go towards them. He decided to go with the latter, since they didn't seem to become closer now that he wasn't moving.

Taking a calming breath, Mephiles followed the monotonous sounds until he was right next to an open doorway. There was no doubt that the voices were coming from there.

"Stop complaining."

"I AM NOT COMPLAINING. I JUST FAVOR NOT STANDING IN ONE SPOT FOR AN UNKNOWN AMOUNT OF TIME WITHOUT ANY STIMULATION."

"Then go on stand-by mode. Your doing so should not interrupt the process."

After identifying that the voices definitely belonged to Metal Sonic and Omega (and after mentally counting to three), Mephy peeked into the room and inwardly sighed in relief when both of the robots were facing away from him, Metal attaching some wires to Omega's body, connecting him to the massive computer they were standing in front of.

Mephiles was ninety percent sure that this was the main office. It fit the definition to a tee.

Taking a giant risk, the shadow hedgie zipped into the room and immediately merged with Omega's shadow. The two dangerous machines didn't notice him, thank Chaos.

Omega gazed at Metal before concentrating on the large monitor and the many files opened up on said screen. "I AM STILL NOT DOING ANYTHING IF I DO SO."

The Sonic look-a-like stepped back from the bulky bot, apparently done with his task. His red optics flashed in annoyance. "That chameleon wants you to download those files, not me. If the job is not done, I will stand to the side while he dismembers you."

"…I WILL STAND."

"I figured that you would." Metal shifted his weight, one foot sliding in the direction of the open doorway. "Do not leave until all of it is downloaded. Understand?"

"AFFIRMATIVE." At Omega's answer, the blue robot made his way toward the exit. However, before he could take a step into the hallway, his partner's voice rung out again. "WHILE I DO THIS, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?"

Metal peered over his shoulder. "I am going to take Penumbra out to train. There are plenty of buildings and trees to destroy."

"AND IF HE RUNS?"

"Is that even a question?" Metal held up a device that Mephiles could only guess was some kind of remote control. To what? From the context that the remote was presented, Mephy instantly knew the devastating answer.

After those words, Metal Sonic left.

 _So that's how they're controlling Nummy… In addition to threatening Cream's life, they are…actually_ _ **doing**_ _something to force him to obey. Just terrible…_

Mephiles stared at the empty doorway, processing everything. Metal was going to get Nummy, Omega was downloading files for some odd reason, and he was in the same room with said mech…who had possibly gone into stand-by mode. The striped 'hog couldn't really tell from his current angle.

He waited a moment to see if the bot would move, and Omega didn't. After taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Mephiles cautiously separated from the natural shadow to gain a better perspective. Pulse like a jackhammer, he moved about a foot away from the mech and glanced up, relief instantly filling him at the sight of Omega's deactivated eyes staring unseeingly at the lit screen.

 _Okay… Okay… This is good._

Carefully rising out of the tiled floor, Mephiles watched for any reaction out of the red and black mech until he was completely himself again. However, to be _absolutely_ sure he wouldn't get attacked, Mephy quickly waved a hand (where in the heck was all this bravery coming from?) in front of Omega's face. No reaction.

The hedgehog smiled to himself – even though his anxiety was still off the charts – before turning towards the computer. He was looking for something to scan his hand so he could unlock Cream's door. As he stared at all of the programs and files opened, Mephiles' happiness slowly faded. How in the heck was he going to do this before Omega decided to turn himself back on? Before Metal came back?

Knowing that he was starting to breathe erratically, Mephy attempted to calm himself down. Panicking was the worst thing to do in this situation. He had lives to save.

Mephiles gave Omega another wary glance before gripping the computer mouse and thinking through what he had to do. Reptilian green irises scanned over the tabs that were pulled up, and Mephy believed that simply minimizing them all shouldn't mess up the downloading process and wake Omega up. He needed a clean slate though; all of the nonsense onscreen was confusing him.

Moving the mouse around and silently clicking, Mephiles was glad that the library in Central City had computers that were free to use, or he would've been completely lost by this point.

Once there was nothing but an Eggman logo on the monitor along with a few folders lined up on the left side, Mephy hovered the mouse over the latter until he found something promising.

 _Doors…_ The shadow hedgie pursed his lips before clicking on the folder. It took a second before two options popped up: 'passwords' and 'scans'. Knowing that he didn't need any passwords, he opened the second option. Three pictures of hands were suddenly in front of his eyes, along with an empty square that had the words 'New Hand' positioned in the center. He immediately clicked on the square, and a touchscreen beside the keyboard activated.

Surprised that it had been so easy, Mephiles allowed himself to grin as he placed his right hand on top of the sensitive glass. He watched in awe as a thin green line scanned his hand a few times before the whole touchscreen glowed green. A fourth hand – his – joined with the others on the big screen.

Mephiles silently celebrated, jumping up in the air and fist-pumping. _I did it!_

However, he couldn't forget where he was. The hedgehog swiftly exited out of the 'scans' and the 'Doors' folders. Then he maximized all of the tabs that he temporarily got rid of so the screen would seem untouched. When Mephiles was finished, he let go of the mouse and examined the monitor. He didn't have would it had looked like memorized, but he'd say that it would be hard to tell the difference.

Satisfied with his work, he turned around only to nearly have a heart attack.

Omega was activated and staring _right at him._

Mephiles had never ran so fast in his life.

00

Cream was alone in her room, leaning against the wall. She was hugging her knees, and her head was burrowed within her arms, hoping that Penumbra would be okay. Metal Sonic just…just took him and she didn't know if he was going to come back hurt again. She didn't want him hurt. But…what could she do?

Mephiles was out there too, but…but now she couldn't help but to think that he was in trouble…

The bunny jumped in surprise and fright when the door to her room was opened. She glanced up and whimpered when she saw Omega standing menacingly in the doorway, his gaze landing on her.

She really wished that Penumbra was here…

To her shock however, the red and black robot didn't come any closer. His voice boomed, "HAVE YOU SEEN, OR RATHER, HEARD A STRIPED HEDGEHOG FUGITIVE RUN PAST HERE?"

Cream shook her head quickly. She wanted the machine gone. She wanted to feel safe again.

Omega was silent for a moment, then, "HE MUST HAVE FLED, FOR I HAVE SEARCHED EVERYWHERE. MY INTIMIDATION WAS TOO MUCH FOR HIM TO HANDLE. HE WAS SMART. HE WOULD HAVE BEEN DEAD IF I HAD CAUGHT HIM."

The rabbit could do nothing but softly whine.

"KEEP THIS IN MIND, RABBIT." Omega said before backing up. "HAVE A GOOD NIGHT." The door shut, and she was alone again.

Well, that was until something, or better yet, some _one_ started to grow out of her shadow.

Mephiles had barely gotten his torso out of the ground before he was tackled. He silently yelped as he was forced out of the shade, a puff of air escaping him when he landed on his back, a bunny crying into his chest fur. He didn't know if they were happy or sad tears. He had a suspicion that they were a mixture of both.

"Mr…Mr. Mephiles! I-I'm so happy that you're back! But…But…" Cream sniffed, and Mephy was met with damp chocolate orbs. "But that meany Metal Sonic took Mr. Penumbra! And…I don't know if he's hurting him or…or…"

The striped hedgehog gave her a reassuring smile, rubbing her back in comfort. She had trailed off, sniffling, and he mouthed out, "It's okay. We can leave now."

Cream tilted her head marginally. "We…We can…leave?" Mephiles nodded, and a shaky smile began to form before it suddenly melted. "But Mr. Penumbra-!"

"We wait."

She read his lips once more and finally let that smile grow. "We wait for him to get back, and then we can leave!" The rabbit then dug her face into his chest fur, quietly giggling. Mephy couldn't help but notice her body relaxing on top of his. _A better alternative than the cold hard floor…_ "I…I can't wait to see Mama again. And Miss Amy, and Mr. Sonic, and Mr. Tails, and…and everybody else…"

 _Yeah…I'll make sure that you see your friends and family again._ Mephiles lolled his head back, it resting on the uncomfortable tile. _Not a lot of people get second chances. You're getting out of this mess, I promise._

He let out an inaudible sigh and promptly heard a soft snore escaping Cream's mouth.

 _All we have to do is wait._

He didn't know when he had fallen asleep, but he sure knew when he had woken up.

When he heard footsteps.

Mephiles' eyes flew open at the sound of metallic heels clanking against the ground. He silently gasped before glancing down at the bunny sound asleep. _Sorry Cream_ , he thought before phasing into the floor quick enough so he wouldn't be seen, but slow enough not to hurt the rabbit.

He merged with her shadow, and it wasn't long before the door slid open, and a dirty and tired Penumbra was shoved inside. He resembled a zombie, stumbling over his own feet.

"We have more business to take care of in the morning," Metal simply stated before going on his merry way.

Nummy's glare held zero strength as he aimed at the metal separating them from freedom. The red-striped hedgehog then gazed at Cream, who was gradually waking up, Metal not exactly being the quietest he could've been.

When her gaze landed on Penumbra, all lethargy left her system. She hopped up on her feet and bounded over to him. "Mr. Penumbra! Mr. Mephiles is back! And he said that we can leave now!"

Mephy reappeared as Nummy gave the bunny a tired smile. "Leave…" The hedgehog who had seemingly been through hell and back focused on Mephiles. His lips curled up more. "Mephiles…We go now?"

The shadow 'hog grinned and nodded. He then approached the exit and waited for a moment, listening for any sounds of wandering robots. When there were none, he slithered under the door and popped back up on the other side. Seeing the scanner to the right, he held his breath as he placed his hand on top of it, and chuckled when the doorway was suddenly unblocked.

 _Oh yeah!_

Cream literally flew out and hugged Mephiles again. But before she started laughing or talking or anything of that nature, Mephy put a finger on his own lips. They couldn't make any noises. If they got caught, they were done for.

The rabbit had gotten the message, grounding herself and nodding. Penumbra was standing behind her, ears rotating furiously, probably acting as better radars than Mephy's own appendages.

"Okay," Nummy said after a moment, and Mephiles took that as being safe to begin their escape.

Melting halfway into the ground (he was faster like this, slithering rather than using his legs), and gestured for the pair to follow him. Mephiles swiftly moved forward and glanced back to see a flying Cream and a trotting Penumbra easily keeping pace.

The trio were near silent as they proceeded, the whooshing air from Cream's flaps being the only sounds generated. Penumbra was surprisingly silent as he moved, but Mephy couldn't say that it was completely unexpected. Nummy _had_ been an exceptional hider in the clearing.

Seeing that losing them wasn't a concern, Mephiles focused back forward, knowing that the last thing he wanted to do was run _into_ one of those evil bots. When they had reached a corner, Mephy abruptly stopped and peaked around it. All clear. He then gestured to the others that it was safe, and they carried on.

He couldn't help but to feel like he was in a movie.

Mephiles almost leaped for joy when they made a left turn and saw the exit. Hearing a muffled squeal behind him, he glanced back and snickered at Cream hiding her beaming smile behind her hands. _We're almost there!_ Mephy, more than ready to leave, sped up and was in front of the passcode lock within seconds.

With Cream standing on one side of him, and Nummy on the other, the shadow hedgie pulled the memory he needed from his mind. 07734-77344. He pressed the numbers with celerity, knowing that a mech could show up at any moment. After putting in the first nine digits, he gave both Penumbra and Cream hopeful looks, and they shared the same expression.

When Mephiles pressed the last button, an alarm started to blare.

 _Oh no… OhnoOhnoOHNO!_

Mephiles was frantic as he glanced around, a red light tinting everything surrounding them. _What…Did I memorize it wrong?! But what…_ He resisted the urge to hit himself. _7734_ _ **5**_ _! Five! Five not four!_ Nearly hyperventilating, and trying to ignore the panicked whines coming from Cream, Mephy went to press more numbers, but when he was _sure_ that he put them in right, the door still didn't open.

 _We're…We're trapped! My lucky streak is over! What are we going to-_

The shadow hedgehog's thoughts were interrupted by a loud bang, and green orbs glanced to the side to see the door knocked down and Penumbra standing on the other side of the doorway. Before his mind could fully process what was going on, Nummy had grabbed Cream, and Mephiles had instinctively attached to the other's shadow.

It was after Penumbra plowed through the trap door that Mephy's brain finally rebooted. They were…They were out! Free! But for how long though? Those robots _had_ to know that something was going on by now!

Mephiles shifted his attention onto Nummy, who was now running on two feet. They were going fast, but Mephy had a feeling that it wasn't fast enough. Penumbra must've been having the same thoughts because he called out, "Mephiles!"

The shadow 'hog appeared halfway out of his shade, a brow raised in question. He barely had time to open his arms out before Cream was basically thrown into them. She gasped before wrapping her arms around his neck. Then, the next thing Mephy knew was that there was _way_ more wind whipping across his face. Penumbra was on all fours now, tearing up the asphalt as they went through the abandoned city.

They were nearing the city's limits, and there wasn't any sign that they were being followed. From what Mephy could tell, the darkness and the clouds covering the moon made it a little hard to see. It was peaceful nonetheless. Mephiles was starting to believe that they weren't in any danger after all, but then Penumbra yowled in pain and tripped over his own feet, tumbling head over heels before coming to an unexpected stop on concrete.

Mephy could only stare in horror as Nummy's whole frame convulsed, static electricity jumping from quill to quill.

"They're shocking him again!" Cream's trembling voice filled the air. She jumped out of his arms and dropped to her knees beside the other hedgehog. Her hands were out to help, but she knew that she couldn't touch him. The bunny's cheeks were moist as she gazed at Mephy. "Mr. Mephiles! Wh-What do we do?"

The blue-striped hedgehog had _no_ answer to that question.

There was no way that he could drag Penumbra to where they needed to go. The 'hog was too heavy, and Mephiles didn't want to be electrocuted himself. Also, even if Nummy was lighter and Mephy had rubber gloves on, Penumbra could only endure so much.

Mephiles glanced the way they came, seeing darkened rusty cars and old newspapers being blown by the cool wind. He could possibly find Metal and try – _somehow_ – to take the remote control from him, because it was obvious what its use was. But there was a slim chance of him taking on that bot and _winning._

Hearing sobs, he refocused on the duo. Cream was crying hard, and Nummy was curled up into a protective ball that was doing nothing to dull the constant pain.

Mephiles gulped. He had a slim chance, but a chance nonetheless.

When he put distance between himself and the others of the group, Cream noticed immediately. "Wh-Where are you going, Mr. Mephiles?" Mephy just forced a confident grin on his muzzle and gestured for her to stay put. He then turned and left the pair, disregarding – as much as he hated to – the bunny's calls to come back.

Mephiles sped through the darkness, the cloud cover technically making everything a shadow so he didn't have to worry about being spotted. He knew that being at a higher elevation would be an advantage, so he phased into the side of a slightly leaning skyscraper, making his way up to the top. When he reached the roof, he realized that the neighboring building was taller.

Most of his brain was screaming for him to make that jump, and the rest of it was hating that new courageous part of his psyche. Mephiles backed up a couple of yards, hoped that he could merge into a shadow of the street while freefalling if he missed, and shot forward.

Reaching the edge, he leaped and narrowed his eyes in response to the wind. When he was close enough to the wall of the taller skyscraper, he activated his abilities and melted into the side, loving how it felt as the adrenaline pumped through his system.

Now he knew why Sonic liked risking his life so much.

Reminding himself exactly _why_ he was doing that, Mephiles slithered up the structure until he could see a lot of the city shrouded in shade. He searched for Metal Sonic, and at first he couldn't find him. But the robot had to be out there, right? He _was_ pushing the button.

Eventually however, green orbs zeroed in on bright red eyes glistening in the darkness. The rest of the mech's body wasn't difficult to decipher. Metal Sonic was at a crossroads, hovering near the ground as he glanced back and forth, clearly not knowing where Nummy had actually gone. From this height, Mephiles couldn't tell if the other had the remote; he just knew.

But how was he going to get it…?

A fight was out of the question, but maybe he just had to make Metal drop the thing…

Mind racing, he tore his focus off of the blue bot and frantically glanced around for something that could assist him in any way. All he saw were holes in the roof, thrown about glass shards, a half broken pipe sticking out of the – Wait a minute. He could use that!

Rushing so that he wouldn't lose sight of the mech, Mephiles zipped over to the pipe and bent it until it snapped. He moved it around in his hands, testing its weight, and deemed it heavy enough to be a good enough noisemaker.

He hastily returned to his spot at the edge just in time to see Metal go in the opposite direction the shadow 'hog was in. Hoping that the pipe would make enough noise (and cursing this slowly emerging daredevil side of him), Mephiles jumped.

He was plummeting head first, his grip on the metal pipe straining his knuckles. The wind whipped his quills to and fro, causing his eyes to water. He blinked the moistness away so he could clearly see the ground that was happy to meet him. At the last moment, the hedgehog dropped the pipe and then phased into the asphalt, the sound of the metal making contact ringing loudly.

As he calmed his heart down (and got rid of the smile adrenaline junkies always wore), Mephy turned around in the shade to notice that Metal Sonic, way in the distance, had turned around. _Yes!_ He inwardly cheered, watching in wait as Metal flew over. _Now all I have to do is wait for the right moment…_

Mephiles remained still as Metal zoomed over, hoping that he wasn't detectable at all. His breath hitched when the robot began to decrease in speed, his glowing opticals zeroed in on the metal pipe positioned right behind the shadow hedgehog.

Mephy's pulse was in his ears when Metal Sonic hovered right above him, and the remote control was _right there_ in his clawed fingers. Before Metal had a chance to move away, Mephiles lunged upwards out of the ground and grabbed the target hand. He then tried to pry the device out of Metal's grip…key word: _tried._

The remote didn't budge, and Mephiles had a sinking feeling in his gut.

Which was completely overrode by the feeling of claws slashing his cheek. His mouth was open in agony before he was harshly shoved away, landing hard on the asphalt under him. Mephiles hissed as his wounds throbbed and as blood leaked from them.

"You must be the original Ultimate Lifeform." Reptilian green irises glanced up to see Metal slowly floating over to him. "You are foolish to think that your little rescue plan would work, no matter what kind of new _tricks_ you must have learned. You will be severely puni-" Metal stopped talking and his red eyes scanned Mephy's body. "You are not him. However, I do not care. I will destroy you _and_ retrieve the hostages."

Mephiles inaudibly yelped when the mech came at him, one set of claws ready to rip and tear. He ducked into the ground just in time to see Metal soar over him. He peeked back out as the bot turned around, red orbs flashing. "Prepare to die." Mephy's eyes widened tremendously when the robot's midsection began to light up.

 _I…I can't be hit by that at all! In the shadows or otherwise!_

Half of his body still out of the ground, Mephiles high-tailed it into the nearest – and very narrow – alley way and morphed into one of the walls. There was a bright light that followed him to the mouth of the alley, and with the trail of smoke it left behind, he was sure that he would've been dead if he was hit.

"You refusing to attack makes this easy for me. I prefer challenges," Metal said as Mephiles made out the mech's floating outline. The other entered deeper into the alley, and Mephy's brain was kicking into overdrive. _A fist fight is a no-go. I'd lose for sure. And running will do nothing but make Nummy's condition worse…_ He focused on the opposite shaded walls, and an idea popped into his head. _Alright Metal, if you want me to attack, I will._

The blue bot stood in the middle of the concrete, looking back and forth, searching. "Come out so you can meet your demise."

And Mephiles did, for a split second at least. Putting enough power in his jump, the striped hedgehog leaped across the alley before melting into the side of the other building. He watched with a small smirk as the Sonic look-a-like whirled around, feeling the shift in the air, only to see nothing there.

 _This is going to be fun._

Mephy repeated the process again behind the mech's back, and Metal spun around once more. "Show yourself!"

 _I am. You're just not seeing me._

The shadow hedgehog leaped across again and again and again, and he noticed how the robot was getting more and more flustered, not knowing what or where to hit. Mephiles stopped his actions for a moment, simply observing how Metal was snapping his head quickly back and forth, wanting to be ready for the next time Mephy came at him.

It was the perfect time to switch it up.

Mephiles slithered off of the wall and into the ground right in front of the oblivious machine. Then for the (hopefully) last time, he leaped forward out of the concrete and tackled the surprised robot. They both crashed to the ground, and in the corner of his eye, Mephy saw the remote go flying back.

Before Metal regained his bearings and decided to gut him, the hedgehog melted into the shade once more and grabbed the remote. He then hauled ass out of the alley way. It wasn't long before he heard a loud bang, and he peered back to see Metal emerge out of the narrow street, fists clenched. He must've punched a wall in anger. The mech – much to his relief – flew off in the opposite direction, probably wanting to find him and the remote. Too bad he was going the wrong way.

Mephiles wanted to cheer, but it seemed like every time he did, things went wrong. So he kept his excitement down…for now.

When he reunited with Cream and Penumbra, the latter was breathing heavy on the ground while the bunny kneeled worriedly over him. As Mephiles got closer, he showed his body more and more until he was jogging over to them.

Cream was the first to see him, and her eyes swirled with many emotions. She saw the slashes _and_ the remote, and Mephy knew that it was hard to take in.

"Mr. Mephiles!" She shouted out, and he put a finger to his lips and gestured for her to keep her voice down. Metal was around and could find them if they were loud enough. Cream snapped her mouth closed until he was standing beside her, then she whispered, "You…You got the remote from them! And got hurt while doing it…"

Mephy gave a 'so-so' sign, trying to tell her that it didn't hurt too bad, even if it was the absolute opposite. His face felt like it was on fire. He didn't want her to worry though.

Concern was still etched into the girl's features. "Okay…" she muttered lowly before brightening up at the sight of the remote. "I don't like that you got hurt, but I'm glad that Mr. Penumbra's safe!"

Mephiles threw the device to the ground and stomped on it, smashing the stupid thing to pieces. _Me too._ A pained groan then reached Mephy's ears, and he turned to see a weak Nummy attempt to stand up, but his legs were wobbling so badly that he fell right back to the ground, expression scrunched up in a wince.

Figuring that the other needed some help, Mephiles squatted down and offered his arms as leverage. The shadow 'hog cringed a little when fingers grasped a tad too tightly, but he stayed and stood up straight as Penumbra did so, leaning heavily on him as he waited for his legs to stop shaking.

Cream was observing with a sad smile on her muzzle, a supportive hand on one of Nummy's arms. "They won't be able to hurt you anymore or tell you what to do…" Then she suddenly addressed Mephy, like a thought just came to her and demanded her full attention. "Mr. Mephiles!" Said hedgehog rose a brow as Nummy regained his balance, pulling away from the shadow hedgie with a sheepish yet thankful smile. Cream continued, "Did you see anyone else in there while you were looking? Mr. Penumbra said that some of his other friends were in there that…that they made him attack…"

Mephiles' body froze. _Made him attack…What?_ His gaze flickered over to Penumbra, who was looking at his feet with guilt spread all over his face. Mephy took half a step away from him, not believing what he heard. _Friends of Penumbra…as in…as in Rogue and Silver?_ The conditions of the white hedgehog and bat flashed into his mind, causing him to swallow thickly. _Nummy did that?! The…the damage he caused… I know that he was controlled, but…Chaos…_

"Mr. Mephiles?"

Thrown out of his thoughts, Mephy shook his head at the bunny's previous question. Understandably, Rogue and Silver weren't in there.

"Really?" Cream blinked a couple times. "Then I wonder where they went…?"

 _We'll run into them eventually Cream. Everyone will love you…_ Mephiles' focus drifted over to Penumbra, whose sorrow-filled gaze was stuck on him. _But you Nummy…I have no idea._

"…Sorry." The red-striped hedgehog ducked his head, ears pinned back in remorse. Mephy let out a heavy breath before patting the twin on the shoulder. _I'm not the one you have to apologize to._ At the contact, Penumbra's expression relaxed and Mephy was unexpectedly pulled into a hug. Mephiles continued to pat him on the shoulder after a brief pause, albeit it was more awkward now.

Nummy released him and gave him a hopefully cautious look. "Not mad?"

The shadow 'hog stared at him before glancing at Cream, who had almost the same expression on her face. Greens locked with maroons once more. Lips twitched and Mephy shook his head.

All tension rolled off Penumbra's shoulders, and Mephiles wished that he could tell the other that the apology may not go as well later on.

Cream clapped as she yawned. "Yay…He doesn't blame you Mr. Penumbra!" She rubbed her eyes. "Can we…Can we go now?"

Mephy and Nummy nodded simultaneously.

The rabbit giggled before holding her arms up, looking expectantly on Mephiles. Said hedgehog silently chuckled before picking the girl up – careful of his cheek – and letting her lay her head on his shoulder. "Wake me up when we get home…" she mumbled, and he gave a short nod.

It shouldn't take long to get there. Penumbra should know how to get back to the clearing he blew up – and hopefully Shadow and the others weren't still there – and they would be close enough to Central City so that Mephiles could guide the way back to Station Square.

Back to their friends.

Suddenly, the surrounding area had gotten lighter, and he trained his gaze upwards to see the clouds parting, the moon's light filtering down on the deserted city. Happiness filled him as he halfway phased into Penumbra's shadow. He nodded at the waiting individual.

A lopsided grin grew on Nummy's muzzle as he got down on all fours. "Thank you…for help." The grin then waned a bit, uncertain maroon orbs searching his. "Will Shadow mad?"

Mephiles hesitated, and that was enough for Penumbra to slump. In response, Mephy put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder once more, hoping that his features were warm enough to brighten the other up. At the grimace – maybe it was supposed to be a smile – Mephy received, he concluded that the red-striped Mobian saw right through his façade.

"It okay. Get Cream home, then talk to Shadow."

Mephiles removed his hand and used it to support Cream as Penumbra started their journey. The shadow hedgie couldn't stop thinking that if anybody was asleep, they were about to get a heck of a wake-up call.

00

 _ **Follow me! Set me free! Trust me and we will escape from the city! I'll make it through, prove it to yooouuuuu… Follow meeee!**_

 **Sorry, couldn't resist.**

 **Next chapter…craziness ensues!**


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer- Nah.**

 **A/N- Woo! A (kinda) quick update! Dunno how often this'll happen though XD Enjoy!**

 **Warnings- Those faint of heart…beware.**

 **Chapter 30- Boom**

A blue hedgehog had his back leaning against the trunk of a tree, one leg hanging to the side of the thick branch he was resting on, swinging subtly back in forth. The night was clear. Moonlight shone down in patches on azure quills, for the canopy overhead blocked some of the slivers of silver.

A light breeze rustled the nearby leaves and made the speedster shift a bit, bringing up both of his legs and skillfully keeping his balance on the limb. He folded them close to his body and wrapped his arms around his knees, borrowing his head in between his elbows. His body relaxed again as he soaked in his own warmth.

However, his rest had been cut short when the branch he was sitting on began to bend. Instincts kicking in, he was thrown out of his sleep. Emerald orbs flew open to find out what was happening.

Only to stare into reflective maroons.

Boom yelped in surprise before losing his balance and tumbling out of the tree. He hit a branch on the way down before landing hard on his back, the grass doing nothing to cushion his impact.

The blue hedgehog hissed as he sat up, rubbing the sore area. "Ah…shit…" Anger then was pumped into his system. It had taken him _forever_ to go to sleep, dammit! Boom glared upwards at his unwelcome visitor, who was peering down at him, head tilted slightly. "You're an effing _asshole_ Stripes! You know that?" He jumped to his feet and clenched his fists, wanting to sink them into something breakable. "Now come down so I can beat the shit outta-"

"Stripes?" The other's voice cut him off, and Boom's mouth snapped closed, a crease forming in his brow. The voice was the same…but something was different. The striped Mobian dropped out of the tree, his landing quiet and controlled.

More awake now, Boom could see that the hedgehog in front of him was _definitely_ not Stripes. His quills automatically began to bristle, not stopping even when the other didn't copy the action. After trying and failing to produce comprehensible words – Boom was _that_ pissed – he skipped them altogether and charged.

The feeling of his fist smashing against Penumbra's cheek was _more_ than satisfying. The striped 'hog tumbled backwards, and Boom wasted no time. He rushed forward and pounced the grounded Mobian, grabbing a handful of chest fur and yanking his head up only to meet with another flying punch.

Boom glared poison, his grip becoming painful. He didn't care if Penumbra looked completely terrified and remorseful; his memory of the 'trade-off' added fuel to his rage. "You've made a _mistake_ showing your face around here," Boom growled, black ears folding back in response. He wasn't buying it. "Stop _acting_ you little piece of shit! It's obvious to why you're here! Came to finish the job, huh? Well-"

Penumbra squirmed in his grip, clawed fingers grasping the hand holding him. There genuinely seemed to be no fight in his system, and that confused the hell out of Boom. "I sorry!" Penumbra exclaimed, "I sorry! I…no hurt you!"

The blue hero blinked before shaking his head and growling again, although the sound was less intense as before. "Bullshit! The moment I let my guard down, you'll follow the orders that stupid _chameleon_ gave you and-" Boom's words cut off when a hand plopped down on his shoulder. Heart skipping a beat, he whirled around and prepared to duke it out with the purple reptile himself, and was thrown for a loop to find that it was Mephiles.

And he was holding a sleeping bunny.

Boom stared for a long minute, eyes flickering back and forth between the hedgehog and rabbit. When Mephiles gave him a shaky smile, everything suddenly became clear. The speedster, standing up now, gazed at what appeared to be this world's Cream, seeing her rest peacefully. Some of his ire dissipated.

"So _this_ is what you've been doing for the past few damn hours," he crossed his arms, ignoring the hint of relief he felt at the other finally showing up after being missing, or rather 'being alone with his feelings' as some of the brats would say.

Mephiles adjusted Cream and nodded. The shadow hedgie then passed by Boom and held out a hand for Penumbra. Emerald orbs narrowed at the sight, Penumbra smiling in thanks while rubbing his now tender cheek. He was still wired up, ready to throw another punch if the other so much _breathed_ the wrong way.

The blue-striped hedgehog held Cream out for Penumbra to hold, and the latter did so with a slightly perplexed expression on his face. Boom _really_ didn't like him holding her. Mephiles just gave Penumbra a smile before turning to Boom and moving his hands. **"Please don't attack him, okay? He isn't…bad. He did what he did because Espio would have shocked him or killed Cream if he hadn't."**

"Are you serious…?" He swore he felt steam pouring out of his ears. Boom kept his voice low, but it was filled to the brim with rage and fury. "So that jackass used her to basically control us _and_ him?" Mephiles nodded, and Boom's teeth gritted together. He looked over Mephiles, noticing the slashes on his cheek. "That robot got to you?" Unless the chameleon had grown claws, there was no way he could've done that.

Mephiles answered, **"Yeah… Metal Sonic got me. Espio wasn't even there."**

Boom didn't give two shits. Mephiles knew where the base was, and he could raise hell. Once he was done with the robots, then he'd track the chameleon down and take care of business.

The azure speedster, loving his plan the more he thought about it, focused on Penumbra who had been watching Mephiles' hands move in awe. Boom tapped his foot on the grass, thinking. Mephiles wouldn't lie about something like this – and after accusing the other before about lying and being completely wrong for doing so, he could afford to believe the silent one – and Penumbra's behavior backed the statement up.

He looked like the absolute opposite of someone about to attack. His muscles were relaxed, his eyes were soft, and his grip on Cream was gentle. When the bunny yawned and snuggled into the red-striped hedgehog's chest fur, Penumbra's lips twitched, and he held her closer to protect her from the cool zephyrs.

Breathing harshly out of his nose, Boom eventually let his body relax. "Penumbra," he called, and said hedgehog perked up at his name. The azure Mobian bobbed his head in the direction of the home. "House's that way." His irritating double and that two-tailed freak were there, and well, they could handle Penumbra and the bunny.

The red-striped hedgie blinked at him before his maroon irises switched to the trees that hid the house in the distance. "Okay," he said, and Boom was moderately surprised that the other's language had improved. _One plus that came with staying with that damned chameleon…_ Penumbra took one step that way before meeting Boom's gaze again, guilt etched into his features. "Sonic… I really sorry."

Boom pointedly looked away, scoffing. "Just freakin' go."

Penumbra slumped a bit before dipping his head. He then ran off, footsteps near silent.

When Mephiles made to follow, Boom grabbed his arm. "Oh hell no. You're comin' with _me._ " Green orbs swirled in confusion, the arm trying and failing to escape his grasp. Boom squeezed a little harder, and Mephiles winced, but learned his lesson and stopped pulling. The speedster answered his silent inquiry. "While you went in to infiltrate and retrieve, I'm going in to _destroy_."

His partner's eyes grew wide and he resumed his struggling.

"And _you_ can't get out of it," Boom sneered, "So you better show me the way, or you'll have bruises that won't disappear until next _month._ "

Mephiles went still for a second before gulping and pointing into a specific direction.

Boom grinned arrogantly. "Good choice."

He then sped off, leaving a dirt cloud in his wake.

* * *

It seemed like no blue hedgehog would get a restful sleep this night, for another speedster had been rudely dragged out of dreamland. However, he hadn't been woken up by an unexpected visitor, but rather a horrified scream.

Sonic yelled in response to the loud voice, not knowing what the heck was going on. His arms and legs were tangled up in his sheets, and he couldn't escape them fast enough. Once he had finally freed himself, he shot up to his feet while rubbing the drowsiness out of his eyes. While he slipped on his shoes – that was the absolute _first_ thing he always did after getting out of bed – his ears swiveled around, trying to pinpoint exactly where the panicked sound was coming from.

Once he identified the location as the living room, Sonic zipped out the exit.

The den was pitch black when he arrived, of course. Even though Sonic really didn't have to worry about money, _no one_ wanted an unnecessarily high electric bill.

When he flipped on the light switch, emerald orbs burned for a bit before they glanced between the two occupants of the room. Both of them had been set free of their restraints and cleaned, Shadow properly healing them after performing the former. Sonic felt immensely better after Shads had taken care of his burns, so he couldn't imagine how those two felt after getting fixed…even though they were still knocked-out at the time.

The hero then searched for a third occupant and frowned when he didn't see one. _Maybe Mephy went to sleep at the Chaotix's place tonight?_

However, that thought was soon pushed to the back of his mind, for the source of the screaming was right in front of him.

Silver was drenched with sweat on the couch, some of his fur and quills sticking together. His fingers were gripping the cushions like his life depended on it, and his breaths were shallow and frenzied between the screams.

Sonic bit his lip, not knowing exactly what to do. Whenever Tails had nightmares, he would just be with the kit the rest of the night, letting his presence sooth the younger brother. But with the white hedgehog…he definitely doubted that would work.

So going with a logical Plan B, the hero went over and placed a firm hand on the psychic's shoulder. He shook him gently, but when that didn't help the situation, Sonic put some power behind it. "Hey, hey Silver! Wake up bud!" His voice was barely heard over Silver's own. "It's just a nightmare! Wake up!"

His advice must've gotten through, because the white hedgie's eyes popped open and his screaming stopped.

It was peaceful for a moment, so Sonic _definitely_ didn't expect to be hurled across the room.

The hero grunted in pain when his back slammed against the opposite wall, roughly falling down to his knees. "Well, hello to you too…" Sonic panted out, eyelids fluttering closed, waiting for the discomfort to fade away.

"Sonic!"

The blue hero glanced over to see Tails quickly hovering over to him. He chuckled as he got back to his feet, stretching his back. "Oh hey Tails. Guess you couldn't sleep through that either, huh?"

"No!" The kit gave his big brother a concerned once-over. "Are you alright? When I walked in, he just…threw you away with his powers!"

"Meh, I've been through worse! He's nothing compared to his _other_ self," Sonic snickered, waving the cub off. "I might need a little massage later, but it's all good."

"Don't expect me to do that…" Tails muttered before shifting his attention to the upturned couch. The force of the psychic energy Silver had sent out made the furniture and the white hedgehog victims of Newton's third law. Silver himself was nowhere to be seen, most likely hiding behind the sofa, but something else caught the genius' curiosity.

Sonic, oblivious to whatever had drawn Tails' attention, strolled over to the overturned upholstery. He cautiously – being hurled wasn't the most pleasant of feelings – peered behind the furniture. Silver was curled up in a ball, trembles wracking his whole frame. High-pitched whimpers filled the air, sounding frightened.

Silver's time in the lab had to be horrific.

Sonic hesitated in touching the other to lower the chances of the psychic lashing out again. So instead, he made his voice as soothing as possible. "Hey Silver…There's nothing to be scared of here. You're safe, okay? You're not trapped anymore buddy."

His words seemed to have the opposite effect.

The shaking became more violent. Mumbles began to pour out of hidden lips. "I-I'm still dreaming… There's…There's no way that he would…would say that…" There were sniffles, and then full out sobs. "I'm in another one! I…He's going…he's going to get me again! K-Kill me…"

Sonic couldn't help but to feel pity, watching haplessly as a puddle of tears formed under the terrified hedgehog. He _really_ didn't know what to do now. Silver thought that this was a nightmare, and Sonic couldn't do anything to snap him out of it.

Mind drawing a blank, he called out to his bro. "Got any ideas, Tails?" he asked, feeling uncomfortable when the cries increased in volume. "I didn't think that it would've been like this…" When he didn't receive an answer, the speedster turned away from the cowering psychic to face the fox. "Tails?"

Said Mobian didn't seem to be paying him any mind. Sonic would bet that he hadn't heard a word he had said. Bright sapphires were scanning a crinkled piece of paper, totally absorbed in the words written there. Sonic tilted his head, placing a hand on his hip. "Alright Tails, I'm sure that whatever you're readin' isn't important as helpin' Silver out."

Finally acknowledging Sonic's voice, Tails looked at him, and the hero didn't like the saddened expression on his face. The kit held the paper out, his eyes a tad damper than normal. "You're right, sorry. But…you just have to read it. It's about the other Cream's death." Shocked, Sonic quickly took the sheet – borderline snatching it – and began to read. "The name of whoever wrote it isn't on there," the cub continued, "but I've got a hunch…" Tails sighed and went behind the couch. "I'll see if I can talk to Silver while you read it."

As Sonic progressed down the scribbled lines, the more he had to agree with Tails. He had a hunch too, a pretty strong one. It all made sense now, why Mephiles disappeared. Them not rescuing Cream was hard on him like everyone else from this world.

When he finished up, the hero folded the paper and flipped it between his fingers. "We shouldn't tell anyone right?"

Tails backed away from Silver when a simple touch on his arm caused more tears to flow. The kit shook his head as he approached Sonic, ears lowered. "I don't think he's brought it up to anyone else, so…yeah." His namesakes swished behind him. "Though I don't think it's healthy to have all that weight on his shoulders…"

Sonic tossed the paper up. "Well, we can talk to him! Tell him that it isn't his fault. He was new to the whole fightin' scene. Everyone would blame the evil Espio, not him." He slid it in his glove.

"That's a good idea." Tails' expression brightened. "So he wouldn't be burdened by that anymore." Both of the brothers then glanced over at the couch when broken whines emitted from behind it. "Speaking of that evil chameleon…" Tails scratched his forehead. "He really…put a number on these guys."

"Totally agree with ya, buddy." Emeralds drifted over to the bat splayed out on the recliner in the corner, tranquilly resting. None of the noise had risen him. A mental light bulb then went off. "What if we wake him? Do you think he could calm Silver down?"

"Um…" Tails tapped his chin. "Maybe? But I don't…" he trailed off, but Sonic understood where he was going.

The hero rubbed the back of his neck. "I get ya. We don't know how he'll act because of the whole…" He pretended to stab himself. The kit nodded, brushing his bangs out of his face. Sonic clicked his tongue in the back of his throat. "Hm… Maybe if we had some backup."

"Backup?" Tails questioned.

"Yeah! We can call up Shadow-" A particularly loud sob impinged their ears, and Sonic hated that he couldn't do what he did best: help. "-and see he if he can do somethin'."

Tails shifted his weight, about to stroll over to the garage, where the phone was located. "Do you think that he'd be mad we're calling so late?"

Sonic lightly scoffed. "Probably for a sec, but then he'll be glad that we did." The kit nodded at his words before going to call, leaving Sonic alone with the shivering Silver. Sure, he felt bad about the condition the psychic was in, but the speedster was inwardly happy as well. Not about his mental suffering – that was more up Shadow's alley – but about the fact that Silver had information that literally lead to the evil Espio's downfall. They could save Cream, get the Master Emerald back, take care of Espio (Eggman too?), and…find out what was up with Penumbra.

The hero's thoughts scattered when there was a sudden white light. When it dissipated, Shadow was left behind, quills a little disheveled.

"Heya, Shads." Sonic gave a brief wave as Tails reentered the room. "Sorry for disruptin' your beauty sleep. You need all you can get."

He received a withering glare. "This is _not_ the time, Faker."

Then, like with Sonic's voice, Silver reacted. However, it wasn't with tears.

"You're not going to kill me…" The psychic's tone was different from before. It wasn't scared anymore. It was confident. Eerily confident. The whispers caused alarms to go off in Sonic's mind, and he couldn't put a finger on why. "I…have my powers now…" Silver slowly stood up, appearing from behind the sofa. His golden gaze was wet, but no water was falling. Determination shone through. "I can _fight…_ even if this isn't real…"

Sonic took a half step back when the psychic's body glowed cyan. His gaze flickered over to an observant Shadow. "Uh Shads…"

The Ultimate Lifeform didn't get a chance to respond. A glow surrounded him as well and he crashed into the nearest wall, grunting in agony when the structure cracked under him. Sonic himself winced. Maybe this Silver and the one he knew were one in the same.

Tails gasped. "S-Silver! What are you doing?!"

Silver had his hand raised, expression completely blank now. He glanced over to the fox. "Regaining my sanity." He floated over the couch and towards Shadow, the closer he got, the more pain the striped hedgehog had to be in.

 _Dang it Shadow! Why'd you have to dream up people so violent?!_ Sonic muttered under his breath, "Sorry Silver," before launching himself in the air and tackling the psychic to the ground.

Silver shouted in shock when he hit the floor, the blue speedster pressing him down. The psychic's features instantly twisted in rage. "Let me kill him! I have to!" Sonic was launched – for the second time in ten minutes – into the air and collided with the ceiling, bits of dried paint floating down. He attempted to move his limps, but it was futile. _It's no use,_ he thought and immediately regretted doing so.

"Don't get in my way!" Silver glared up at him, arm keeping him pinned. He then refocused on Shadow, who had been charging up a Chaos Spear. With a scowl, the white Mobian interrupted the attack by picking up the striped hedgehog once more. He slammed the other against the floor multiple times.

Sonic began to get worried when drops of blood started to appear.

"C'mon Silver! Can we just chat over tea?"

He was ignored as the white Mobian lifted Shadow into the air, his fingers beginning to slowly clench. At the choked sounds the striped one was producing, Sonic knew that this was going south fast.

"I have to kill him…then he won't show up anymore…" Silver said it like the statement had made perfect sense.

At Shadow's face becoming pale, Sonic was about to give a last ditch effort to get the other to see reason, but then something out of the corner of his eye caused him to pause. Tails was sneaking up on the psychic with a thin towel gripped in his hands. The cub glanced up at Sonic, and the hero winked.

Tails grinned at him before continuing with his task.

"Hey uh, you don't mind if I provide a little soundtrack to your murder?" Sonic asked innocently. "Okay cool! I've got the perfect song for this kind of thing! I'll start from the most…apt part." He quickly added before clearing his throat. "Erhem. Can you see all of me? Walk into my mysteries? Step inside and hold on for dear liiiiiiife!"

"I…hate…you…Faker…" Shadow wheezed out.

Silver threw Sonic an odd look before muttering, "This is definitely a nightmare…"

The hero resumed, "Do you remember me? Capture you, or set you free? I am all, I am all of-" When Tails blindfolded the psychic, the cyan auras promptly disappeared. Sonic let out a whoop as he fell, landing on his feet. "That's my bro!" He then glanced over to the kneeling Ultimate Lifeform. "Sorry for that Shads, but hey, it's better than bein' choked!"

"I beg to differ." The Ultimate Lifeform wiped his mouth as he stood to his full height.

"No…No no no no!" Silver reached up to tear off the towel, but Tails grabbed his arms and fought before Sonic took over, wrenching the white one's hands behind his back. The hero kicked Silver's knees out, making him drop to the floor. Desperation was laced in the psychic's voice now. "No please don't kill me…please don't…"

Sonic shared glances with Tails and Shadow. Silver was really messed up…

"Okay look, no one's tryin' to hurt you. You're the only one attackin' people around here," Sonic said.

Silver started crying again.

"And this isn't a dream, or a nightmare," Tails placated, wanting to get through to him.

Shadow stayed silent.

"You're ly-lying! I can't believe anything you say!" Silver was near hyperventilation. "You're just here to help Penumbra kill me over and over and over again…I can never…escape…"

"Penumbra?" Sonic repeated, flabbergasted. No. It couldn't be…but it was possible. That striped hedgehog had attacked them. He could've been fully willing to target Silver and Rogue as well. The injuries matched…the gashes they had were too jagged to be made by knives or kunai. "He attacks you?"

Silver let out an unexpected laugh, and Sonic had to remember to retain his grip. "I wish that was all he did… Attack and heal and attack and heal and attack and heal and attack…"

Torture echoed in the hero's mind, and his gut twisted at the thought of them having gone through that.

Shadow squatted down to get eye level with the psychic even though the other was blindfolded. His voice was calm yet strong (Sonic had honestly thought that Silver would get an earful). "This is real, Silver." The psychic flinched and whimpered at his words, but Shadow kept going. "We saved you from Espio. You and Rogue. Penumbra isn't here; I'm not him. I am-"

"All of meee."

Sonic fully realized that he was going to get punched later.

"Shadow," the Ultimate Lifeform finished, right eye twitching.

Silver froze before shaking his head vehemently. The anger was back. "You're _lying_ to me! Shadow's dead! He fought and he died! Just…Just kill me already! I want to wake up! _Kill me!_ "

"This isn't working," Tails whispered the obvious.

Neither Sonic nor Shadow had time to answer for low groaning reached everyone's ears. Three heads whirled over to see Rogue lifting an arm and rubbing his eyes. "What's with the noise…"

Sonic watched as the bat gradually regained consciousness with mixed emotions. It was great that Rogue was waking up. However, the hero saw how Silver was, and wasn't really excited to deal with the winged mammal. He hoped that he was friendly…and sane.

The room was quiet as teal orbs blinked open. A brow was furrowed when they started at the unfamiliar ceiling, but that completely disappeared when they shifted and took in the situation.

They all just looked at each other until, "Um…" Those drowsy eyes flickered from Silver to Sonic to Tails to Shadow, lingering on the Ultimate Lifeform. The tensing of muscles wasn't missed by the others. "Am I interrupting something?"

Sonic pursed his lips. The bat didn't look like he was about to go crazy. A genial smile grew on his muzzle. "No actually! I'm glad that you're awake!" The hero gestured to the blindfolded hedgehog. "You see, we need you to convince Silver here that he isn't having a nightmare and that he isn't in any danger. Tails, Shadow, and I here have tried, but Silver just keeps shoutin' to kill him. So, can you help us here?"

Both Shadow and Tails deadpanned at him.

The speedster shrugged. "What?"

"Yeah, I knew it…" Rogue put a hand up to his head. "The drugs are still goin' at it in there. Imma go to sleep dudes, if that's okay with you. If seein' a nice Sonic wasn't enough, imagining a dead Shadow is a little too much."

"Drugs?" Shadow questioned. It was safe; the bat wasn't volatile. "What drugs?"

The bat's nose scrunched up. "Dunno man. Espio had to pump some into me at some point in time. Got me alllll kinds of messed up, bro."

"Does it really matter?" Silver glowered, "You all are just gonna kill me in the end! Just get it over with!"

Rogue tilted his head. "Daaammmn this stuff's gotta be strong."

Tails facepalmed. "Oh boy…"

Sonic let out a long-winded sigh. "Guys! This is real life! Silver, you're not dreaming, whether you like it or not, and Rogue, I have _no_ idea if the evil Espio had given you something, but everything you're seeing is _actually happening._ "

"I _don't_ believe you!" Silver screeched.

Rogue frowned, sitting up on the chair. He flapped his wings to take flight, staying airborne for a moment, and grounding himself right in front of Shadow. The bat looked the striped hedgehog over before poking a black arm. Then he squeezed it, and Sonic had to stifle the laugh bubbling up because of Shadow's incredulous expression.

Rogue, once he was done, crossed his arms and regarded Sonic, "Yeah, I don't believe ya either dude. I'm seriously about to get some more zzz's, cuz this is too weird." He returned to his chair and linked his fingers behind his head, crossing his legs at the ankle. "Funny as hell, but weird."

Sonic gaped at him before pointedly glancing at Shadow. "Listen, Shads, get your boys."

"Better said than _done_ , Faker," Shadow hissed back. He then sent Rogue a heated glare. "Rogue, I'm _alive_. Espio didn't kill me in the attack. He _lied_ to you."

"Like you are?" Silver asked, and Sonic gave Shadow a warning look to keep him from hitting the psychic. He'd been through enough already.

Rogue's response wasn't any better. The bat had made a mouth with his hand, and it was blabbering while he rolled his eyes. "Keep talkin' man, but I'm not hearing anything. Once Blue gets mean, Silv becomes untied, and Shads disappears in a puff of smoke, _then_ I'll know that the drugs are wearing off."

"This…This is impossible," Sonic muttered.

"Remember, blame the evil Espio," Tails reminded.

"Oh yeah." Rogue pointed between the brother duo. "You two being all buddy-buddy is weird too, cut that mess out."

"Hey Rogue, can't you just help me out here? I want to kill Penumbra, but they're holding me back. Can't you just distract them or something?"

"Sorry Silv. I don't listen to hallucinations."

"And I don't usually ask the people I dream about for help, but here I am…"

Sonic couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Cross out impossible. This is _insane_."

Tails pulled on his ears. "There's no way that this situation could get any crazier…"

There was promptly a knock at the door.

Nobody moved for a moment, but then Tails eventually spun his namesakes and approached the front door. His hand was slightly trembling as he grasped the knob.

After calming himself, he opened it.

Two maroon orbs were staring right back at him.

Many emotions appeared on the fox's face before exasperation took over. "I really just need to shut up sometimes."

* * *

"The captives have escaped."

"… _Say that again. I must've misheard you."_

"There was no miscommunication and you know that, chameleon."

 _"…"_

"Is it that difficult to process?"

" _No. I'm trying to not break everything around me at the moment."_

"Understandable."

" _How did they get out?"_

"Someone came and rescued them."

" _Who?"_

"I do not know the name, but I believe he is of relation of either the Ultimate Lifeform or the Ultimate weapon. He has the power to disappear into shadows."

 _"…"_

Something smashed on the other line.

"Do not break anything too important. My guess is that you know him?"

" _Yes. His name is Mephiles. He came from my dimension. I forgot all about him. So what happened exactly?"_

"I did not see him until he had freed the hedgehog and rabbit. To prevent Penumbra from getting too far, I pressed the button on the remote so he would be immobile. Easy to find. While I was searching the city, the one named Mephiles found me and took the remote while utilizing his powers."

 _"…"_

"I was not the first to see him."

" _Omega was?"_

"Yes, that is what he told me. Mephiles had showed up in this office while Omega was downloading. I do not understand how he could not kill the target in such a small space, but Omega managed it."

" _Where is he now?"_

"Patrolling."

" _Is his download complete?"_

"Yes."

" _I need you to take out his main hard drive."_

"Why do I need to do that?"

" _Because I have a job for him to do. You are familiar with his manual controls, yes?"_

"That should not be difficult to figure out."

" _Good, because I have a job for you too."_

* * *

"Are you kidding me?"

Boom sneered as the city he had _already_ effing searched stood in front of him. The azure speedster glared over at the Mobian beside him, emeralds promising bodily harm. "This _better_ be the damned place you came from, or so help me-"

" **This is the place."** Mephiles signed as he bit his lip, absorbing the city he had just ran away from. **"Definitely."**

"Let's just see about that." Boom grabbed the shadow hedgie's arm again and zipped into the abandoned metropolis. It wasn't until he was smack dab in the middle of it that he let go. A red shoe tapped against the ruined asphalt. "So where is it?"

He wasn't even sure if Mephiles had even heard him. The striped Mobian's ears were swiveling wildly, and his body was tense. Boom was about to slap the other into attention, but he answered before the semi-hero had a chance to.

" **I'll…"** Mephiles locked eyes with him before sighing. **"I'll show you. It's close by. Just…be quiet. They might still be out here somewhere."**

"I'm not scared of those shits." Boom followed the other when he halfway melted into a dark shade. "I can be as loud as I freakin' want," he opposed, even though he unconsciously lightened his steps as they went.

Less than five minutes later, they were standing in a falling apart skyscraper, the moonlight filtering through the holes and shattered glass. The opened trapdoor was the obvious entrance that angered Boom, for he had completely missed it the first time he was here alone.

"How big is the lab?" Boom questioned.

" **Pretty big."** Mephiles answered, jumping when a rat scampered in the distance.

The azure speedster rolled his eyes before taking charge, walking through the threshold and strolling down the underground stairs. He sensed his partner behind him.

When they reached the knocked down metal door, Boom glanced back with a risen brow. Mephiles' hand movements were swift. **"Penumbra."**

Boom hummed as he entered the base. He made sure that the other had phased somewhat in his shadow before he went too far however. "Should've guessed the pet."

He could feel the frown aimed at him. He chose to ignore it.

The underground structure was so silent that Boom's footsteps could've been bombs going off. The duo traversed many hallways, the speedster searching for anything to turn into scrap metal. There was nothing but bloodied rooms and supply closets.

Boom was now leaning against a wall in a random hall, irritation pulsating off of him in waves. "Where the eff are they?!" Damn being quiet. He was pissed.

Mephiles was standing in front of him, eyes snapping back and forth, like he expected something or someone to pop out of nowhere. **"Maybe they left…"** He then gave Boom a sheepish look. **"Or they're in the main office…"**

The speedster wanted to strangle the other. "Why the _hell_ didn't you take me there first?"

" **I wanted to prolong it as much as possible."**

Boom growled low in his throat, but didn't take any physical action. Partly because he could kinda blame himself for that. Yeah, this place was practically a maze, but how the hell did he miss the stupid _main_ office?

"I should punch you for that. Be lucky that I'm saving them up." Boom disregarded the snicker he saw out of the corner of his eye. Mephiles then pointed, and the semi-hero stomped in that direction.

As they went, the hedgehog's curiosity for a particular subject grew. "How the hell did you do it anyway? Save Thing 2 and the bunny?"

He watched his partner's hands move. **"I sneaked in hidden in Penumbra's shadow, learning the passcode of the entrance. Then I found the main office and searched in the computer, making it scan my hand so I could open the door those two were trapped behind."**

Boom was silent for a moment, then he grunted. "The old Mephiles probably would've just sat in a corner and cried."

" **Well, the new Sonic is doing a lot of things the old Sonic wouldn't do also."**

The azure Mobian stared at Mephiles, them two sharing a look for a second, before Boom pushed the other away, not as rough as it could've been. "Oh yeah? Just shut up and show me the way." And he _wasn't_ pouting dammit.

Instead of earning a hurt look like he'd been anticipating, Mephiles gave him a tiny smile before transforming back into a living GPS system. Boom just glared and followed the other's directions.

It wasn't long before the speedster was staring at a huge monitor that was doing nothing but being an expensive mirror. Boom saw his and Mephiles' reflections in the black screen.

"If no one is here…" The blue hedgie searched for the power button. "Then I say that we track those mofos down." He caught the slightly surprised look sent his way. Shit. He thought of ways to save himself, but he couldn't see any of them working. So he said, "Take an effing picture. It'll last longer."

" **You really want me to go with you?"**

Boom pretended that he didn't see the movement, extra concentrating on finding the power.

When he figured that he found the right one, the speedster pressed it on the keyboard only for nothing to happen. Boom scowled at the monitor before thrusting both of his fists down. "The damn thing can't be that hard to power up, can it?"

Mephiles peered at the rows of keys, finger tapping his chin.

"Didn't you turn it on when you came in here?"

" **I didn't have to. It was already being used."**

Boom gritted his teeth for a moment before sweeping his fingers across all of the buttons, _one_ of them had to do something.

Apparently, he was wrong.

Emeralds flashed in annoyance. "If we came to this shitty place for nothing…" Boom whipped his head toward Mephiles when the striped hedgehog tapped his shoulder. "What?" he snapped.

The shadow 'hog pointed a shaky finger – his whole body was trembling, actually – at the blank screen. Boom furrowed his brow as he looked, and then his quills instinctively bristled as he focused on the third figure in the reflection.

Both of the mammals spun around, and Boom leered. He'd been waiting for this. "It's great to see you again, asshole!" He greeted Omega. He waited for a response, or any reaction whatsoever, but there were none. Something felt wrong here, but he couldn't say what. Maybe because the robot's red eyes were almost completely dull? Or that his body wasn't moving? Even though the bot had to walk to get where he was…

Never mind any of that, however. It was time for the mech to get its metallic ass beat.

"It's just you and me again, huh?" Boom subtly gestured for Mephiles to get into his shadow, and the other did so without any question. "Don't think that you'll win this time," he boasted, "I'm going to tear you limb from limb!"

Still no reaction.

Boom scowled. _The hell?_ The bot was usually a chatterbox. So was this just a ploy to throw him off? He absolutely wasn't falling for it.

Ready for some action, Boom was about to pounce, but then he hesitated. From his experience, he knew that Omega had a flamethrower at his disposal.

He subtly – at least, he hoped that it was subtle – gestured for Mephiles to leave the room with his finger. It took a moment, but the shadow eventually disconnected and zipped for Omega's shade, aiming to get past him.

When Mephy was about halfway there, Boom decided to start the fight so Omega would be too busy to ignore the speedster.

He took a step forward.

Then all he felt was heat, blistering and agonizing heat.

* * *

He couldn't move.

His ears were ringing, his body was burning, his head was swimming, his mouth was filled with blood, and he _couldn't move._

Something, or many things, was crushing him. A jagged edge had dug itself into one of his thighs, hitting bone. His other leg was broken, two halves of the bone in his calf rubbing against each other.

Boom didn't know which way was up. He was disoriented and in pain and trapped. Fuck…

His arms were wedged. The hero screamed when he pulled them out from under the rubble, coughing out the blood in his mouth. He felt his skin ripping away from him as he did it in one jerky movement, irritating the deep burns of the flesh still intact.

Boom's hands were shaking so much that he could barely grip the piece of rubble inches from crushing his face. Grunting in strain, he pushed upwards, hearing multiple things tumble that wasn't the debris he was holding onto.

Thanking Chaos that this piece was moveable, he kept pushing, no matter how much electrifying pain it caused him. He didn't know when it was fully free, so he guessed the right time to toss the piece to the side. He sighed in relief when he got rid of it, his upper half now unrestricted.

Boom carefully rubbed his eyes, getting rid of the dust irritating them. Dull emerald orbs saw the ruined ceiling, parts of it missing, most likely pinning the rest of him to the ground.

The speedster barely managed to sit up, his body refusing to properly listen to him. There was too much stimulation. There was pain everywhere, and his mind couldn't comprehend.

The ringing had gone down. Boom let the blood drip down his chin, figuring that it wasn't worth it to wipe it away with his injured arms.

The panting hedgehog glanced around at his surroundings, seeing the multiple piles of rubble, some of them reaching halfway up to the ceiling. Shit, had he been under one of those…

The computer had been reduced to a mess of melted metal, glass, and wires. A couple of loose ones were sparking occasionally.

Omega was nonexistent. His parts were scattered everywhere, most of them weren't solids anymore, forming puddles in the middle of the horrid mess.

Boom wheezed as he inhaled the leftover smoke and dust particles in the air, having to take deeper breaths to feel like he wasn't suffocating. The blue Mobian then focused on the debris weighing his legs down. A pained hiss past his lips as he grabbed hold of the heavy piece of ceiling digging into his leg. He let out a cry as he shoved it away, blood now flowing out of the open wound.

"D-Dammit…" His raspy voice was weak and shaky. Green irises drifted over to his obviously broken leg, seeing it bent at a slight angle. After a moment, he built up his courage enough to reach down and reset the bone. Lips bled after he bit down on them to swallow another scream that threatened to emerge.

Boom then held his hands up in front of his face, seeing them violently tremble. He didn't mean for this to happen. All he wanted to do was _end_ everything, but all he did was walk right into a trap. And then he dragged Mephiles in with-

He couldn't stop the gasp that forced his way out of his mouth. "Mephiles!" A quilled head whipped around as he scanned the room, not seeing a trace of the other anywhere. Boom frowned, ignoring the way his pulse and respiration rate increased. "Do something, you asshole!" Nothing changed in the room, and he forced himself to calm down. _Maybe he didn't get caught in it. Maybe he went to get help. That's it._

Boom sucked in a breath when he made a move to stand up. He rolled over so that he was on his hands and knees. Then, he used the nearby scorched wall to get on his feet, shocks of agony flowing through his system. He put more weight on the leg with the open wound; he didn't want to agitate his break even more than it already was.

He just stood for bit, that action alone taking a lot out of him. Between his burns, the gashes, and his broken calf, his body was nearly exhausted. But he couldn't stay here. Someone could show up at any time, and – Boom _hated_ to admit this – he was in no condition to fight.

The speedster used the wall as a crutch as he limped over to the exit, harshly coughing a few times. It was when he was almost at the cracked door frame when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye.

A hand.

Under a huge pile of rubble.

Boom's stomach dropped, and his heart leaped into his throat.

He forgot all about his injuries as he suddenly switched directions, aiming to run over to the covered hedgehog. A scream tore out of his throat once he stepped with his broken leg, instantly falling hard to the ground. Boom groaned before pushing on, crawling on his hands and knees.

The first thing he did when he got to the pile was grab the visible hand. It was limp. Boom's body froze. "No…No… _Fuck_ no. Mephiles!" He began shaking the body part, wanting any kind of resistance. There was none. Boom's vision started to blur. "No…Not again…no…" The hedgehog held the hand in his own, squeezing. He blinked, and wetness rolled down his face. "Can you hear me? Please just… _please._ "

Nothing.

Chest constricting, Boom let the appendage go before digging into the debris, not caring that his arm muscles were screaming. He dug in a blind panic as he pushed away the rubble. More of Mephiles gradually was revealed, and the speedster could see the tragic burns that started at his elbow.

His upper arm was freed, then his shoulder, and then…

Boom couldn't push down the bile rising in his throat. He turned to the side and threw up the contents of his stomach.

Mephiles' face was gone. Incinerated. There was nothing but muscle and bone and…

He vomited some more, tears mixing in with the foul fluid.

When his stomach had been emptied, Boom regathered himself before reaching out and pulling his friend free. He held the shadow hedgie in his burnt arms, eyes red and puffy. A few seconds ticked by before a loud sob echoed off the walls. Tears dripped on the floor as he brought Mephiles closer to his body.

Boom yelled, screamed, shouted, and cursed at the empty air until his throat was raw. Then he cried with his forehead against Mephy's chest, sobbing and mourning. But under the sorrow and grief, there was hate swirling underneath the surface. Not hatred towards Espio or Eggman or robots in general.

Hatred towards himself.

* * *

 **…**

 **Next chapter…forgive and forget.**


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer- I wiiiiissssshhhhhhh.**

 **Chapter 31- Best served cold**

Tails didn't know what to feel as he stared.

The kit's namesakes flared out in apprehension after he saw the striped hedgehog standing in the doorway, his brain instantly registering that this newcomer was definitely not Shadow. His red fur was darker, and so was his eyes. Not to mention that the other's quills were unkempt and his nails were a bit sharper than normal. There was only one conclusion.

This was Penumbra, and the kitsune was suddenly scared for his life.

But then again, the Mobian held in the striped hedgehog's arms lessened the amount of fear he was supposed to feel. Cream was there, sleeping soundly in Penumbra's hold, snoring softly. Relief and happiness bubbled up within him; however, he had to remember that she was being cradled by someone more unpredictable than Shadow in one of his moods.

She was here, but how safe was she exactly?

Tails' body didn't move as sapphire and maroon gazes locked. He was afraid that any muscle twitch would set the other off (quite literally). The young genius swallowed thickly, resisting the urge of snatching Cream from Penumbra's grip, and unconsciously allowed a whimper to pass between his lips.

At that quiet sound, Penumbra tilted his head, and his expression softened to Tails' extreme shock. The hedgehog looked contrite and vulnerable. Never mind that this was the same person who just blew up Sonic's group. Tails hadn't seen that expression on a red-striped hedgehog's face _ever_.

"I…" Penumbra quietly began, gently adjusting Cream. Tails saw this, his mind going haywire. He was scared, happy, cautious, but most of all, confused. Why was the twin here? And acting all...nice? Lost in his own thoughts, he almost missed the rest of Penumbra's choppy question. "…come in?"

Tails gaped like a fish out of water, unable to formulate a response. "Uh…" The kit peered over his shoulder, silently pleading for help from somebody, _anybody_.

Shadow's guard was at its max as he glared at his double; however, hate wasn't the only thing swirling inside him. Like the kit, he was extremely wary, but the rabbit in Penumbra's arms lessened the urgency he would've felt if his twin had shown up at the door alone. The Ultimate Lifeform wanted desperately to retaliate from Nummy's previous explosion before another one leveled the surroundings, but unfortunately, a sleeping bunny was in his way.

Which begged the question… _Why_ was there a sleeping bunny in his way?

At Tails' begging look, Shadow stayed silent at first, glancing swiftly around the living room. Sonic was still holding tight to Silver's arms, keeping them restrained, but all of his focus was trained on Penumbra, understandably. He was just as lost and apprehensive as Tails was, mouth opening to take control of the situation, but no words tumbled out.

Silver himself had been silent ever since Penumbra knocked. He was biting his bottom lip, both ears swiveled in the direction of the front door. His muscles were clearly tensed.

Rogue, currently sitting straight up in the chair, wasn't even focusing on Penumbra. All of his confusion and disbelief was aimed at Cream. Shadow couldn't blame him, for the rabbit would be the second 'ghost' the bat had seen in the past twenty minutes. Rogue would learn that he wasn't hallucinating soon enough, especially if (more like when) things got violent.

When Shadow brought his attention back to the door, his quills bristled at the sight of Penumbra staring right back at him. The only response was a look so Chaos-dammed _pitiful_ that made it seem like _Nummy_ was the victim here, not the ones he had brutally attacked.

The Ultimate Lifeform searched within those maroon depths, trying to find any deception hidden underneath. Penumbra shouldn't be anywhere experienced enough to have learned to mask intentions like that, but working with that evil Espio could have corrupted the twin to the point where Penumbra was the perfect weapon.

Shadow found no hostility, but that didn't placate him at all.

And he couldn't do anything unless…

"Let him in," he said to Tails, ready for anything.

Both Sonic and Rogue whipped their heads in his direction. The hero was conflicted about his decision for a split second before nodding. The bat looked at him like he had just lost his mind before lifting a hand to his own forehead, muttering 'I'm going crazy' multiple times.

"W-Who exactly are we letting in?" Silver stuttered out as Tails bolted from the front, aiming for Sonic's side and leaving the door wide open. The psychic jerked at those footsteps. "I couldn't have heard that voice right. I can't be dreaming of t-two-"

"You're _not_ dreaming, Silver," Shadow snapped, sick of the psychic whistling the same tune over and over again. He watched as Penumbra took light steps inside, barely making any sound. His double was gazing at Silver now, and guilt was etched into all of his features. Shadow continued when Penumbra stopped shy of the middle of the space, regarding Rogue without actually paying him any attention. "And Rogue, this isn't a hallucination." The faster those two faced the facts, the lesser the chance of someone getting hurt due to recklessness. "If either of you are so hell bent on saying that _this_ isn't real, then pretend it is at least until we deal with _him._ "

The two addressed were quiet for a moment; Shadow observed as Penumbra glanced between the albino duo, ears plastered against his head.

Rogue was the first to respond, his voice low and unsure. "Damn…you're an angry ghost. But…alright dude, since you're so adamant about it… I'll uh…humor ya for a bit."

"Ditto," Silver breathed out, "But only if you um…really-smart-dream-Penumbra keep the other Penumbra from mauling me. Oh, and set me free please?" This was the first time Shadow had taken his eyes off of Nummy since the latter had walked through the door, rubies flickering over at the psychic before returning to his mirror image who was now curiously scanning the interior.

"Free him, Faker." Silver could possibly be a help here, and they didn't need Sonic preoccupied when things went to hell. "But I swear if you try something, you won't just have one striped hedgehog to worry about."

The resulting gulp was audible. "G-Got it!"

Sonic hesitated at first before shrugging, letting go of the white one's arms. "Don't make things hard for us, pal." The hero said, patting Silver on the shoulder as he ripped off his blindfold. Golden orbs saw Shadow first and then Penumbra. They couldn't be wider. Sonic snapped his fingers in Silver's face, regaining his attention for a millisecond. "Remember your end of the bargain!"

Silver was half-listening to him, drifting back and forth between Nummy and Cream. The next second, the white hedgie propelled himself into the nearest corner, curling up in a ball tighter than before, trembling in silence.

"Silver-" Sonic began, but Shadow cut him off, paying attention to how Penumbra's arm twitched, like it wanted to reach out to the psychic but couldn't because of the bunny it was carrying.

"We'll deal with him later," Shadow stated curtly, "He isn't attacking, and that's good enough." Sonic scratched his cheek, frowning, but didn't reply. After glancing over at Rogue to make sure he wasn't having some sort of meltdown as well, Shadow addressed their current problem. "Penumbra," he barked, and said hedgehog's ears perked. The Ultimate Lifeform made sure to add a growl to his voice when he spoke. "Why are you here?"

There was no response for a couple of seconds, and Shadow started to believe that the question was too complicated for the other, but then Penumbra shifted himself so that the sleeping rabbit could be held in one arm. The one word he uttered through the whole room for a loop. "Escape."

"Escaped?" Tails exclaimed, doubt laced in his tone. "But to escape…that means that you were…"

Penumbra smiled sadly at him before nodding. "Espio make me attack." Maroons drifted from the kit to Silver to Rogue to Shadow and settled. "Shock. Cream die." Nummy shook his head, face scrunched up in pain as he remembered. "No want."

Shadow did nothing but narrow his eyes. "I don't believe you."

"C'mon Shads," Sonic muttered, gesturing at the downtrodden 'hog, "Just look at the guy! I really don't put it past the evil Espio to do that kind of stuff…"

"Pain shouldn't be enough," Shadow hissed, "And why the hell would he care if they did anything to the rabbit?"

Tails pursed his lips, eying the hedgehog/bunny duo. Furry appendages swished languidly behind him, not as fluffed as before. "I don't know Shadow… Look how gently he's handling her. They've both been captured for a while…maybe they got to know each other?"

"Right, like that chameleon would let them have a sleepover." Shadow scoffed before letting his piercing gaze fall on Rogue. The bat had his arms crossed, them resting on his knees as he observed the situation. His brow was creased, and the downward curve of his lips wasn't subtle. "Rogue." Teals focused on Shadow, expression morphing into an interested one. "Did you see Silver _at all_ while you were trapped?"

"Nope," he said, "Just heard him…"

Shadow rose a brow at that before glancing over to the psychic. Silver had changed positions. Instead of curling up with his back to everyone else, he was now curled up with his back to the corner, shaky yellows peeking out of his white fur. The Ultimate Lifeform dismissed the latter part of the bat's answer, there was no need to dig deeper there.

"See?" he folded his arms across his chest, scowling at his double. "You-"

"Wait." Shadow blinked when his twin cut him off before deepening his frown. Penumbra looked somewhat apologetic for doing so as he poked Cream lightly on her cheek. "Cream…Cream…" He stopped when he succeeded in rousing her, the bunny wiping her eyes. "Home," Nummy whispered, brightly smiling when the rabbit gasped at his words.

"We're…We're home?" Penumbra beamed at her as he placed her on the ground. The second person that Cream saw was Sonic, and she squealed in happiness. She hugged Nummy tight, and he returned the gesture. "We made it Mr. Penumbra! We really made it!"

Alright…maybe Shadow was wrong about them two not being familiar with each other.

When the pair laughed together, Shadow was instantly reminded of his past. Penumbra not wanting Cream to die was more believable now. He didn't know how much they've bonded in there, but it was enough.

Enough to put her life over Silver's and Rogue's.

Said psychic was blankly staring at the bubbly bunny, and the frown was back on the bat's face.

Cream ended the hug and bounced on her tip-toes. "Mr. Sonic! Mr. Tails! Mr. Shadow!" She hadn't noticed the albinos yet. Her chocolate orbs were sparkling. "I'm so glad that we got out! It…It was so bad in there!" The shine dulled a bit as she fiddled with the red bow tie around her wrist. "Espio was so mean…keeping us in that room…" She sniffed. "And hurting Mr. Penumbra…taking him away…"

"Taking him away?" Tails questioned.

She nodded. "They…They would hurt him if he didn't go…" The bunny glanced up at Penumbra, who was avoiding her gaze. "He said that Espio made him hurt some of his friends, but…" Cream trailed off, Silver's movements catching her attention. She watched as he stood up and leaned against the wall. Her head tilted. "Oh! Hello Mr. Silver!"

Silver smiled at her before approaching, holding out a hand for her to shake, keeping Penumbra in his peripheral. They shook after Cream confusedly blinked. "Hi dream-Cream!"

Cream pulled back a bit, lips twitching downwards. "Dream? But…"

"And I don't know if you know my friend over there!" The psychic pointed over to the bat in the room, Cream following the finger. "His name is Rogue!"

The winged mammal grinned. "Yo."

"Rogue…?" Cream put a finger on her chin. "You…look a lot like Ms. Rouge! Are you related to her?"

The grin faded a bit as Rogue pursed his lips, teals flickering over to Shadow. "Rouge?"

Silver shrugged and gave the bat a fleeting glance before refocusing on the girl. "I dunno about that, but um…we're the 'friends' that Penumbra," the emphasis on Nummy's name was only lost on the bunny, "had to hurt."

Sonic, Tails, and Shadow shared a quick look.

Cream's eyes bulged and she covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh my gosh!" She examined what she could see of his body and did the same with Rogue's. "You look okay now, but… How bad did he hurt you?" At Silver's and Rogue's silence, the bunny shook her head. "Never mind! You don't have to answer! I'm sorry!" Penumbra's stare didn't leave the floor. "Um, but I have another question though! How did you escape? Mr. Mephiles said that you weren't there when we did!"

"Whoa whoa hold up a sec! Mephiles was with you?" Sonic asked, flabbergasted.

"Yeah!" Cream chirped, Nummy nodding beside her. "He found us and got us out!"

"I'll be damned…" Shadow muttered to himself.

"He must've jumped into one of your shadows when you went!" Tails reasoned, looking at Sonic and Shadow.

"Heh," Sonic rubbed his nose with a grin. "He's real good at bein' a good guy. Too bad ours never let that thought pass through that thick skull of his."

Golds and teals met with each other again, but neither said a word.

"Speaking of Mephiles, where is he?" Shadow inquired, searching the room for any sign of him.

Cream pursed her lips. "I don't know! Mr. Penumbra!" She turned toward Nummy, and his ears twitched in response. "Do you know where Mr. Mephiles is?"

"Mephiles?" Penumbra echoed before peering behind himself at the still open door. The ghost of a frown marred his features as he faced Sonic. Nummy sniffed the air a bit, and his features softened. "With Sonic."

The azure hero was befuddled for a moment. "With me? No wait, you mean the other me!" Penumbra nodded, and Sonic put his hands on his hips, smiling, "Well, looks like we don't have to explain any of this doubles stuff to you, huh?" Nummy copied his expression, shaking his head.

"The evil Espio must explained it somehow," Shadow deduced, "Looking back, it does seem strange that he wasn't fazed by the two Fakers at the trade-off."

"Doubles stuff? Two Mr. Sonics?" Cream repeated, absolutely lost.

"Yep!" Tails stepped up to the plate. "There are two of them! And well…basically two of most of our friends here! Like, there are two me's and two Amy's." Cream gazed at him in awe, and he happily kept going. He gestured to Nummy. "Penumbra there is a double of Shadow. They all came from another world, another dimension!"

"Whoa…" Cream stared at Nummy in a whole new light. "Are there two of me?"

"Uh…"

"There is, but she decided not to come visit." Sonic saved his little brother, giving the kit a subtle wink.

"Oh…" Cream was disappointed for a moment before brightening back up. "So…So are there two Espio's?"

Sonic noticeably deflated. "Yeah. Yeah there is."

"And is the new one mean?"

Sonic nodded.

Cream puffed her cheeks and paced. "Then you need to go teach him a lesson! It's mean to take people and hurt them!" She went around the room, eyes following her. "It's not good what he did to Mr. Silver, Mr. Rogue, Mr. Penumbra, and…and…" The bunny hugged the bow tie close to her body. "You need to get him!"

The blue hero tapped his foot. Him and Shadow were thinking the same thing, rubies and emeralds swirling with determination. "Hm…we do, don't we? Hey Rogue, Silver, Penumbra! How 'bout you three lead-" Sonic cut himself off when he turned only to figure out that he was talking to nothing but air. He paused, staring at the spots that used to be occupied. "Uh…" he looked at both Tails and Shadow, who were surprised at the trio's absence as well. "Where'd they go?"

"Mr. Penumbra?" Cream called out, worried.

Tails' gut dropped, thinking the worst. He glanced at the other two hedgehogs and saw similar expressions on their faces. They had the same thing on their minds. Was this just another unofficial trade-off? The bunny for Silver and Rogue? Penumbra wasn't innocent at all…?

"Don't worry Cream!" The kit called out, thinking on his feet. He went over and grasped her wrist, gently pulling her over to the kitchen. "They all just went for a walk. They all just got freed from rooms. Nothing's wrong with getting fresh air, right?"

Cream followed him, still fretting. "I guess you're right…"

"They'll be back in a bit. Hopefully we'll still be awake!" Tails chuckled, "It is the middle of the night. Do you want a little snack? I know that they didn't feed you much there… I can try to find something if you want?"

The duo disappeared in the kitchen before Cream could reply.

Shadow's fingers clenched. "I _knew it_." He resisted the urge to punch a hole in the nearest wall. "I _knew_ that something was off, but all of you damned _idiots_ -"

Sonic held up a hand. "Hey now, you can curse everyone and everything later, but first, we gotta find the boys." The hero zipped over to the open door, feeling the coolness of the night as he stepped out into the open. "Did he use Chaos Control?" he rushed, throwing his voice over his shoulder at the Mobian suddenly behind him.

"No," the Ultimate Lifeform grunted, pushing past him and stomping into the grass. "I didn't feel an energy spike."

"So he's on foot? Alright!" Sonic smirked, not letting his concern show. "He can't be too far then! Especially carryin' two bodies, y'know?"

Shadow didn't bother responding, a sudden breeze signaling his departure.

* * *

"This should be far enough…maybe?"

"I think so man."

"Right. Look, I think it's coming loose. Make it tighter."

"There we go! Can't have him making too much noise, yeah?"

"…I kinda want to hear him scream though. Is that bad? I'm starting to feel bad about this…"

"Don't get all sappy on me dude. It's just pain. He'll live."

"…So can we take the gag away?"

"Nah, we don't want them findin' us too early. Are you just gonna use your powers to keep him still?"

"Yep! And speaking of them, that whole other dimension thing sounds insane! Like, do you really think…?"

"There's no other explanation really bro… Drugs don't come up with that level of crazy."

"Neither do nightmares… Is this high enough for you?"

"Yeah, that'll do. Count down for me, Silv."

"Okay! Hehehe, give it your best shot! Three! Two! One!"

"Chaos, that felt good. Hey P-man, sorry not sorry. Can't take what you dish out?"

"I don't know why you didn't kill him when you had the chance, Nummy. And I don't know why you had to go _all out._ Ooo, he's already starting to bruise! How hard did you kick him?"

"Didn't think it was _that_ hard! He must bruise easily!"

"You'd think because of his dark fur… You're going in for another? Want me to count?"

"Nah, I'm goin' in for a combo this time."

"Yeesh…that's _gotta_ hurt! Is his shoulder dislocated?"

"Dunno…but I hafta go for it, right? My arm's been broken so many times that I've lost count!"

"I'm cheering you on! _Ouch!_ Did you hear that pop? I heard that pop!"

"Hell yeah! Hey P-man, do me a solid and stop screaming? …There ya go. Whimpers are better, I guess. The wind's loud enough to cover that up."

"You think they're already looking?"

"Definitely. Hey, you wanna shot? That tree over there looks sturdy enough."

"Hm... It does, and it won't take much to slam him into it, but I wanna draw blood, you know?"

"Yeah I know."

"So how about I just take a stick and…."

"And _there's_ some blood! Right on the cheek too! Goin' in guns ablazin'!"

"There's not nearly enough though. My room was painted red. Was yours?"

"All over dude, you don't even know."

"Bet I do! But anyway, we gotta paint him like he painted our rooms. Want a stick?"

"Nah, I'll just watch for a bit. But really stick it to him!"

"Gah your puns are horrible."

"You just don't apprecia – Wow that was loud."

"I know! And I wasn't even that close to his eye!"

"P-man, for bein' Shadow's twin, you don't take pain very well."

"Well, we don't either."

" _Didn't_. And are we doubles of Shadow? Nope."

"True! Oh jeez… I gotta take a little break."

"Pushin' yourself too hard man?"

"Sorta. We _did_ just kinda regain consciousness."

"'Kay. I'll knock him out then."

"What the heck Rogue!"

"…Oh hell…"

"What did you do?! Did you snap his neck?!"

"I didn't…hold up… Okay! False alarm! He's still breathin'. Whew."

"Don't scare me like that!"

"I'm sorry dude! He's fine!"

"Hmph."

"Don't worry man, he's still alive! We can't kill him, y'know, since he didn't kill us."

"Unfortunately…"

"Oh c'mon Silver. You don't mean that bro."

"You didn't think about it while you were in there?"

"…"

"Thought so."

"…How long do you think he'll be out?"

"How hard did you kick his head?"

"Dunno."

"On a scale of one to ten."

"…Seven? Eight?"

"A good fifteen minutes then. Maybe twenty. I should be fine by that time."

"That's long enough to let him get some z's."

"Then we can start round two?"

"Wish we had a bell."

"Heh yeah… When we find Espio, we're gonna kill him right?"

"Oh…yeah."

"What's wrong?"

"I've got a strange feelin' that I screwed up dude."

"How?"

"With the double thing. There are supposedly two Espios, right?"

"Supposedly."

"Well okay, so…Me wakin' up in the house wasn't the first time I woke up."

"It wasn't?"

"Nope. The first time was in a clearing. Basically in the middle of a battlefield. Yeah I know, crazy right? So I wake up all tied up and crap, and I see Omega, two Sonics, Penumbra, and Espio. Thought I was all drugged up."

"Understandable."

"I ignore the Sonics – which I know now aren't hallucinations – and go to the chameleon. I do some magic and manage to stab the guy's eye out."

"That's awesome! He's completely blind now!"

"About that…"

"What?"

"It might've been the wrong Espio, man. He had both of his eyes."

"…You definitely screwed up."

"Uh huh."

"The people here are gonna hate you."

"Well obviously not. The Sonic and Tails in there didn't kick me out. And Shadow didn't look too angry."

"Those aren't the ones I'm talking about. Remember Shadow's campfire story? The detective agency?"

"Oh."

"Mhmm."

"I'm not really worried about Charmy, but Vector on the other hand…"

"But our Vector will protect you!"

"Speaking of him, where is he? And the others?"

"Sleepover at other peoples' houses? They've been here for a while now. We've just been out of the picture."

"Well bro, get ready to photobomb."

"I don't – Wait look, he's waking up!"

"Silv, what the hell happened to fifteen minutes?!"

"I don't know! _Sorry_ I didn't get the strength of kick to minutes of unconsciousness ratio right!"

"Sorry for yellin'. I mean, do you need more time?"

"I think I'm good."

"You sure bro?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, round two is a go! Silver, if you please!"

"Ring-a ding ding!"

* * *

Shadow glared at the outline of Station Square in frustration.

There hadn't been any sign of Penumbra. He understood that his double could be silent when he wanted, but that didn't mean that he didn't leave footprints. Unless he traveled by tree – which was very unlikely because of the baggage he had to be holding on to – Shadow shouldn't have been so clueless to where his twin was.

Damnit, if Penumbra actually got away, then them losing the Master Emerald would have been all for naught. Knuckles would go into a frenzy, and who _knows_ what hell the evil Espio was going to put them through. Again.

Shadow glowered as he recalled Penumbra's smiling face.

He had them all fooled.

Figuring that his twin was smart enough to avoid public areas, the Ultimate Lifeform turned on his heel and plunged back into the trees, planning to throttle his elusive double as soon as he found him.

* * *

Sonic ducked and dodged tree branches and trunks as he went, his fast footfalls humming as they thudded against the grassy ground. His emerald orbs were sharp as they searched around. Penumbra could literally be anywhere now with a huge head start that was getting bigger by the second.

And it didn't help that he'd been out here for a good thirty minutes.

The hero couldn't help to have a little bout of déjà vu, comparing this situation with when he and the others went out searching for Cream until the moon was high. The azure speedster trained his gaze upward, the moon shining brightly down, blurs of leaves blotching the view. Sonic gritted his teeth and pushed himself harder. He was going to find the trio, no matter what.

"If I was an ultimate lifeform playing for the wrong side…" he muttered out loud, hopping over an oversized root. "Where would I go?" Sonic knew _exactly_ where Penumbra would go; that wasn't the problem. The hero had no idea how to get there. All he could hope for at this point is to catch a sign, a glimpse, anything.

Huffing, the speedster changed tactics. Instead of zooming past a tree, Sonic went straight for it, using his speed to run his way up the vertical trunk. He reached the top in record time. Utilizing his fast reflexes, he veered off onto a thick branch and put on the brakes, not wanting to fly off the massive plant.

Keeping his balance, Sonic gazed out over all of the other trees in the area, thankful that he luckily picked the tallest tree around. The night was calm, contradicting his erratic beating heart. He didn't see anything but greenery, no Mobians in sight.

Cupping his hands around his mouth, he yelled out, "Silver! Rogue! Say something!" There was always a chance of them not being knocked-out. Silver maybe, because if he wasn't, Penumbra would have to deal with his telekinesis. For Rogue, it was a toss-up. "Marco!" he tried again after receiving silence.

Nothing, and he wasn't surprised.

The hero was about to jump down and run off again, but something made him pause. Blue ears swiveled. He thought that he heard a footstep. He waited a moment, and there was another one. It was closer. Sonic focused downward to attempt to find the source, but he was too high up and his field of vision wasn't that great.

Adrenaline pumping, he hopped off the branch and curled into a ball to minimize the impact. He bounced once on the ground before straightening out. "Hello?" His voice carried over the zephyrs. "Anyone there?"

His only answer was another footstep.

Sonic whirled his head in the direction the sound emitted from. His breath stuck in his throat at the maroon orbs peering at him out of the darkness. Sonic crouched a bit so he could be ready for any potential attack. Nummy was dangerous. "Penumbra?"

The voice that answered shocked him. It was weak, broken, and the hero could hear the pain laced within. "S-Sonic…?"

The hero didn't dare lose his stance, but worry sparked inside of him. That was the voice of someone who was extremely hurt. "Nummy?" The eyes that stared at him were wary and hesitant. "Wanna come all the way out so I can see ya?" He didn't want to take any chances with this guy.

At first, the striped hedgehog didn't move. Then he limped – yes, _limped_ – out of the shadows, and Sonic's fighting stance immediately fell away. He couldn't keep in the stunned gasp.

There were cuts and bruises all over Penumbra's body, blood staining and caking his fur. Red liquid also dripped out of his mouth and down his chin. One of his eyes had a black rim, both of them moist from unshed tears. Penumbra's left shoulder was clearly dislocated, sticking out at an unnatural angle.

The striped hedgehog's posture was one of a kicked puppy who was ready to run away at any sign of danger. Sonic switched from attack mode to helping hero mode, knowing that no one could fake being injured like that.

When he took a step forward, Penumbra crouched down low, ears folded back and frame slightly trembling. Sonic held out a hand. "Hey hey…is okay! I'm…I'm here to help!" The hero approached again, and Nummy didn't move. Once he was right in front of the other, the speedster ran a hand through his blue quills, emerald irises scanning their surroundings for a specific hedgehog and bat. "What happened to you?" Sonic eventually asked, "And where's Rogue and Silver?"

When he uttered those names, Penumbra flinched like he'd just been slapped. The twin swallowed thickly. "They…h-hurt…me…"

Alarms went off in the hero's mind. "They…hurt you?" Was…Was this another trick? Because there was no way. Nummy gave a meek nod, using his working arm to wipe away any moistness in his eyes. Sonic, getting over seeing an ultimate lifeform this emotional, needed answers instantly. "Where are they?" he repeated. "Are they hurt?"

Shadow's double attempted to shrug, but he whimpered out in pain when the action jarred his shoulder uncomfortably. He then shook his head, communicating that the duo weren't attacked. So Nummy didn't retaliate…?

"Did they…" Sonic bit his lip. "Did _they_ bring you out here?" Penumbra nodded again, and the hero had a sneaking suspicion that the duo's stay in the lab effected them more than Sonic thought it had. "Alright…" He got a bit closer to the other, dark eyes staring at him in curiosity and caution. "I'm going to carry you back, okay? So you won't hurt yourself anymore."

"O..k-kay…" Penumbra stuttered out. After some maneuvering, Sonic managed to get the wilder hedgie into his arms. He was heavy, but not so much that the hero couldn't handle the weight. "Nice," Nummy mumbled, making sure that his shoulder was safe.

Sonic forced a chuckle. "Yeah, I'm pretty nice huh? Bet you're not used to this." When Penumbra didn't respond, the blue 'hog sped off in the direction of the house. _Wait 'til you hear about this, Shads._

* * *

"Is the Faker back?"

Those were Shadow's first words as he stepped through the threshold of the home. Tails, who had been nodding off on the couch, sprung awake. The kit rubbed his eyes. "No…No he isn't. I'm guessing that you didn't find them?" he asked, a crease forming in his brow.

"No," the Ultimate Lifeform hissed, "They disappeared without a trace."

"Sounds familiar…" Tails glanced back at the bedrooms, and with the absence of a certain bunny, Shadow deemed that she was in a bed sleeping. The kit pulled at his bangs stressfully. "And we _just_ got them back! Everybody's gonna have a fit…" he sighed out.

Shadow didn't reply, choosing instead to pace back and forth, deep in thought.

"Why would he do that though?" Tails' questioning voice filled the air. "I mean, the evil Espio can't be holding anything over his head, right? What's the point of taking-"

"Penumbra's extremely malleable." Hover skates thudded against the floor. "He was with Espio for more than enough time to plant all kinds of thoughts into his mind. We don't know exactly how dangerous he is."

"Well, right now, I can say that he's as dangerous as a baby Chao."

Shadow whirled around to face the front door, not expecting to see Sonic cradling the object of their conversation. Especially with said object bleeding and in obvious pain.

"What the hell?" he exclaimed, taking a step back when Sonic entered. "What's the meaning of this?"

"Hey, don't look at me." The hero gently put Penumbra on his own two feet, Nummy wincing with every movement. "I didn't do this to him."

"Wait! Somebody actually-!" Tails hovered over to the trio, examining Shadow's twin with a bewildered expression. When he reached out to touch Penumbra's shoulder, the hedgehog marginally leaned away. The kit brought his hand back in, gazing up at Sonic for answers. "What happened?"

"Where's Rogue and Silver?" Shadow's tone demanded a response, and when Nummy withdrew into himself, rubies shifted to the azure speedster. "Well, Sonic?"

The hero shrugged. "Beats me." Then his features hardened a bit, taking in Penumbra's condition. "But to answer you little bro, Nummy here said that they were the ones who took him outside. They're the ones who did this to him."

"What?!" Tails could hardly believe his ears. " _Silver_ and _Rogue_? But why in the world would they do that?"

"It's…not that farfetched," Shadow regrettably gritted out. The striped hedgehog then reached forward and placed his hands on his twin's dislocated shoulder, ignoring the hurt whine that emitted from the other. Penumbra cried out when he set the bone back in its place, and whines tumbled out of his mouth as Shadow healed him with the emerald hidden in his quills. It didn't take long for Nummy to lean into his touch.

Shadow continued, "They did the same thing he did to them." He moved his hands to Penumbra's more severe cuts. He could give his double the Chaos emerald and let him heal himself, but that was a risk Shadow wasn't willing to take. "Only they know the hell they went through."

"But they know why Nummy did it though," Sonic stated, glancing at the twin. "You really didn't have a choice, did you pal?"

Penumbra lowered his head and shook it slowly. "So sorry… No want to hurt, but…"

"Hey hey…it's okay…" Tails patted him lightly on his shoulder. "We don't blame you!"

"Those two obviously do though…" Sonic rubbed the back of his neck, rolling it a bit.

Shadow focused on a nasty bruise. "You were here when they woke up. They were confused, in denial, and in Silver's case, violent and terrified. And they thought that this _wasn't_ real. When we told them that it was, and Penumbra was right here in the room…"

"So they did it…for revenge?"

"Seems like it little buddy." The hero put his hands on his hips, foot tapping. "They didn't seem like vengeful types though." He paused. "Well, not Rogue anyway."

"They were _tortured_ , Sonic." Penumbra subtly cringed at Shadow's spat words. "It doesn't matter how they were before."

"I guess…" The four Mobians lapsed into silence as Shadow worked, lost in their own thoughts.

"Should we go after them?" Tails asked after a while. Nummy was mostly healed by now, only a few scrapes remaining. "I can get a bird's-eye-view if I take the Tornado."

Sonic gave him a supportive smile. "That's a good idea! We really do need to round those two up. They definitely need a time out!" The hero then booped Penumbra's nose. "I've heard great things about this little thing here! Wanna come help track them down?"

"No."

Sonic and Tails blinked in surprise when both striped hedgies spoke with finality.

Nummy and Shadow glanced at each other, the former cocking his head with a small lopsided grin on his muzzle. Penumbra then uttered, "No want…find them. Attack again, no want hurt." The shine in his eyes dulled. "No pain…please?"

Sonic didn't know what to say to that, so Shadow decided to expound on why he declined. "In addition to his preferences, I believe that we don't have to search for them in the dead of night. They will show their faces again eventually." _Then we can slap some sense into them._ "They aren't in danger."

Tails chewed his bottom lip. "But what if they go looking for some?" At the perplexed looks he received, he explained, "They went after Penumbra, right? So what if they go back and try to deal with the evil Espio?"

"They may have had a temporary bout of insanity, but they aren't stupid." Shadow was more than a hundred percent sure that the pair wouldn't step foot into that lab again, given the trauma they had gone through while there. "And if I'm honest, we _won't_ be able to find them. It took long enough just to time him." He gestured to Penumbra. "They'll show up later. Guaranteed."

Sonic pursed his lips for a moment before shrugging. "Hey, if you say so Shads. You know them better than we do." He linked his fingers behind his headquills. "But if things go downhill, be prepared for a loud and obnoxious 'I told you so'."

"And _you_ be prepared for a fist aimed at your face," Shadow retorted automatically with a gleam in his eye.

"You gotta manage to catch me first, slowpoke! I'd be gone before you could touch me!" A raspberry was blown.

"Do you want to test that scenario _right now_ , hedgehog?"

"We can't! You need your beauty sleep, remember?"

Tails and Penumbra just watched as the two went at it, verbal attacks being thrown back and forth. The underlying chance of things turning physical was gradually growing, and the kit wished not to get in the middle of that. So, he grabbed the other striped hedgehog's attention.

"Hey Nummy." Entertained yet slightly concerned maroon irises drifted over to him, waiting for Tails to continue. "Wanna go get cleaned up? A shower would feel really good right now, don't you think?"

Penumbra's brow marginally creased as he tilted his head. "Shower?"

"Yeah!" Tails took hold of the striped Mobian's forearm and began to direct him to the bathroom. There was no resistance as he pulled. "You need to get that stinky blood off of you!"

They had almost reached the exit of the living room when they were stopped by Shadow's voice. "After he gets out, we're leaving."

Tails paused in his stride, looking back at him. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that Penumbra and I are going to find the lab."

Sonic, figuring that their playful spat was put on hold for now, nearly gaped at him. "You're going without me? I'm hurt!"

Tails stared in disbelief for an entirely different reason. "But wait! I thought that you said it was stupid to fight the evil Espio?"

"Who said anything about fighting him?" Shadow scoffed, "I just need his location, nothing else. Penumbra obviously came from there, so he should-"

"No!" Three sets of eyes swiveled over to Nummy, whose facial expression had morphed into an angry one. "No," he repeated firmly. Those dark irises were piercing now, and everyone was reminded that he _was_ Shadow's twin. "Not going," he said to the Ultimate Lifeform, a growl leaking into his voice. "No Espio. Not again." Nummy then nudged Tails. "Shower." The word was stated more like a command than a request.

"Uh…yeah sure, let's go!" Tails gave Shadow and Sonic an unsure glance before leaving the room.

The blue hero whistled lowly. "The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree, huh Shads?"

Shadow merely hummed, knowing how stubborn he was and how stubborn his twin could possibly be.

"Heh, and it looks like you changed your mind completely about your double, eh?" Sonic grinned at him, large and mocking. "Yep, we _all_ are stupid idiots for thinking that he's a good guy."

"If you don't want that apple shoved down your _throat_ , Faker, I'd advise you to shut up."

"Y'know what? I'll take your advice _this_ time Shads. While we have a sleepover with Cream and Nummy, you can catch up on your beauty sleep!"

Shadow had to Chaos Control back to his apartment. If he hadn't, he would've punted Sonic through the nearest window.

* * *

"Dude, it feels so great out here!"

"Yeah? And it'll feel even greater if we knew where the hell we _were_."

Rogue tore his gaze from the rolling waves that reflected the white moonlight and settled it on a gloomy Silver who was standing in the darkened sand of the empty beach they found. The bat stilled his wings and dropped to the soft ground, a smirk plastered on his face. "Aw c'mon Silv, don't be so pessimistic! It's better than stayin' in that house, cuz _I_ sure don't want to be surrounded by four walls right now."

Silver huffed and crossed his arms, pouting. "I see your point. I don't either, but did we _really_ have to come all the way out here? We could've just…"

The bat waved him off. "Stayin' around would've just increased our chances of runnin' into the cavalry. Don't get me wrong, I'm relieved that Shads isn't dead, but ya know."

"We're going to see them anyway," Silver mumbled, "And they are still going to chew us out for doing that to Nummy."

"And we can deal with that later." Rogue approached the seawater, the liquid pooling around his bare feet as the waves crashed. The temperature was perfect. This was _so_ worth flying a couple hours for. They had been searching for something to take their minds off of everything, and here they were. "Might as well destress now, man. I know you wanna."

"You don't know anything," Silver opposed as he took off his boots and socks. His toes immediately sunk into the cool sand. The psychic went to stand beside the bat, disregarding the pleased smile sent his way. The water splashed against his ankles. "I guess it feels good…"

"See? Just relax!" Rogue clapped the other on his back, making him almost lose his balance. He pretended that it was an accident, stifling a snicker. "Oops! Sorry bro, I didn't mean to-" His words cut themselves off when water splashed down on his head, drenching him. Teals widened as a chill ran down his spine, then they narrowed at the sight of a grinning Silver with a floating ball of liquid beside him. "So you wanna play that game huh?"

Before the psychic could respond, he was tackled into the shallow ocean, a shocked yelp escaping his throat. The two landed with a splash, the both of them now soaked to the core.

Rogue laughed as he fluttered his wings, standing back up. "You look like a straight up rat, man!"

Silver let out an exasperated puff of air as he brushed his limp quills out of his face. "I think you have it wrong!" He floated out of the water. "Aren't _bats_ called rats with wings?"

Teal orbs rolled before Rogue attempted to splash the psychic again. However, Silver managed to prevent any drop from making contact. Rogue frowned at the cyan covered liquid and at the other's smug smirk. "No fair dude! Get splashed like a man! _Ugh!_ " he gasped when Silver sent water right at his face. Some was inadvertently swallowed. The bat promptly had a coughing fit.

Silver instantly felt bad seeing his friend with his hands on his knees, hacking up a lung. He floated over and patted the bat's back. "Sorry! And _my_ apology's real." His only answer was a wheeze. "…You alright?"

Rogue wiped his mouth when all of the water fully dislodged. There was a dangerous glint in those teal orbs of his. "You better watch your back Silv! I might not get you back now, but – Wait a sec…What's that?"

He pointed to something in the distance, and Silver followed his finger. There was a weirdly shaped object drifting in the water, carried forward by a wave. It wasn't long before it was deposited on the sandy shore, forgotten by the tide.

"Is that…" Silver was questioning his vision. "A robot?"

"No way…" Rogue flapped his dripping wings and flew over to the item, Silver right behind him. They both landed on either sides of the object, blinking down at it. "I think…I think you're right bro…" The bat nudged it with his toe, and when it didn't move, he bent over and grabbed its metallic leg, holding it upside down in the air. He dangled it back and forth, noticing a minor dent in its side. "It's so tiny though."

Silver poked the yellow 'M' on the small mech's stomach, staring at its deactivated eyes. "Is it dead?"

"Maybe?" Rogue turned it around so he was scanning its rear. "Maybe it's just a toy and there's a switch or somethin'…"

The psychic focused on the gloves and shoes that it adorned. "It's a cool looking toy. Probably expensive too. Why the heck was it just drifting in the ocean?"

Rogue shrugged. "A kid was most likely playing around and just dropped it." The bat sighed as he flipped the object right-side up, holding the limp robot by its underarms. "Well, it doesn't turn on."

"I doubt it still works anyway, salt water and all," Silver reasoned, a sea breeze ruffling his quills.

"Hm. Coulda sold this for some money, but oh well." The bat let go of it, the mech sinking partially into the sand. Rogue stepped over the item and eyed Silver mischievously. "Back to what I was sayin'-"

"Oww…"

Both Silver and Rogue stiffened at the whine they heard.

Golden and teal irises slowly returned their focus to the robot in the sand, widening as said mech sat up, shaking the grains off of itself. A tiny hand held a painted head, and a groan left the disproportional body. "What…happened?" A childlike boyish voice sounded from it, artificial yellow eyes blinking open. "Where am I?" The opticals searched around before landing on the mammalian duo. The robot gasped. "Gah! Don't sneak up on me like that, you stupid idiots!" he yelled.

Rogue wasn't even fazed by the name calling. He was amazed that the mech worked and was _sentient_. "Whoa!" He crouched down in awe. "Are you a toy lil dude? Or an actual robot?"

"What do you think, idiot?" The bot huffed and crossed his arms. His swollen cheeks were too adorable to take seriously. "Do I look like a toy to you?"

Silver frowned. "You don't want us to answer that."

"Did I _have_ to wake up next to two idiots?" The small mech waved his arms around before pouting again.

The white hedgehog glared. "What the heck?" He forcefully pointed to the large body of water beside them. "You better watch your mouth little guy, or you'll be swimming with the fishes! Again!"

There was a high-pitched laugh. "You may be bigger than me, but you're not very intimidating!" The laugh abruptly ended when he was yanked off the ground and into the air, glowing cyan. The electricity in Silver's golds had the bot gulping. "Y-You still don't scare me, idiot! You have to try harder!"

Silver scowled. "Like this?" With the flick of his wrist, the mech was upside down. Ignoring the shocked squeal, Silver plunged him so hard into the sand that all of the bot's head was buried. "Hmph. Let's go Rogue."

"Wait dude…" The hedgehog rose a brow at the bat. Rogue gestured to the struggling bot, ears perked. "Do you hear that? He's…crying!" Silver hadn't heard it at first, but now that his friend had said the word, the wails grew in volume.

His anger quickly drained away. "He is!" Silver dropped to his knees and dug the robot out, freeing his head. He gazed in surprise at the real tears that flowed from the mech's eyes. The bot was sniffing and crying about like a toddler. "Um…" The psychic glanced over at Rogue for help.

He didn't know what to do either as the smallest one sobbed. "S-Stupid! Stupid! You…You can't just do that to me! I…I…" His words turned into an incomprehensible mess.

"I'm at a loss here man," Rogue whispered, and Silver was in the same boat.

They just silently watched as the robot eventually calmed himself down, sniffling. "I…I'm sorry! I'm just…I don't know where I am! I don't remember anything! And waking up next to two _idiots_ who th-think that I'm s-stupid toy isn't h-helping!"

"Well _sorry,_ " Rogue reluctantly apologized.

"Hold up," Silver stared as the robot got rid of as much moisture as he could, "You don't remember anything?"

"N-No… I don't know how I got here…"

"Do you have a name?" Rogue questioned.

The mech frowned. "I…don't remem – Wait! My name…my name is Bokkun! I remember that much!"

"Bokkun?" Silver snickered. "That's a weird name."

Bokkun's arms flailed again. "Na-uh! _Your_ stupid name is weird!"

"…You don't even know what it is."

Rogue cracked a smile when the little robot sulked. "His name is Silver, and I'm Rogue. _Nowhere_ as weird as yours."

Bokkun stuck out his tongue. It was blue. "W-Whatever! That's your opinion!"

Silver laughed, picking the mech up by holding his sides. "You act just like a baby, you know that?"

"P-Put me down, stupid! And I do _not!_ " he argued.

"He looks like one too." Rogue leaned over and flicked one of the bot's short arms.

"Your…Your _face_ looks like a baby!"

Silver laughed again. He turned to look at Rogue, gaze hopeful. "I like him. Can we keep him?"

" _Keep me?!_ I'm not some kind of pet! Ah! Put me down!"

His shrieks went unheard.

The bat thought for a minute before moving his shoulders. "Yeah sure, why not? The lil dude's funny, once you get over the fact that 'stupid' and 'idiot' are his favorite words."

"Do you hear me?! I'm not a pet!"

The psychic cracked a smirk. "So do you want us to leave you here then?"

Bokkun instantly deflated, blinking his big eyes at him. That only lasted a second before the mech fired up again. "Were you listening to me at all, idiot? I don't remember anything! Why would you leave me by myself?!"

"I'll take that as a no."

The robot pouted once more. "I don't like you two."

"Don't be like that!" Rogue petted Bokkun on his forehead, and the mech's cheeks puffed out. "We'll grow on ya."

Silver took a moment to balance the robot on his quills. "Comfy up there?"

"No!"

"Why did I know that he'd say that?" The white hedgehog shared a chuckle with the bat before asking, "So what are we going to do now?"

"Explore a bit more man! We've got all night, and I'm not even tired."

"And when are we going to ask someone for directions?"

"…Eventually."

"See, I was right! Both of you _are_ idiots!"

* * *

 **Next chapter…together at last!**

 **And by the way, this story was thought up with only game canon in mind. So Bokkun isn't exactly…known here. He's 'new'. Keep that in mind as we go forward ;)**

 **Ps- Bokkun is from Sonic X if you didn't already know.**


	32. Chapter 32

**Disclaimer- I don't own these guys, and I will never have a chance to.**

 **A/N: Get ready for this monster of a chapter!**

 **Chapter 32- When it rains, it pours**

No one uttered a single word as they waited.

Hardened maroons bored into artificial reds in a tense showdown, both gazes not wavering so much as a millimeter.

The bystanders were tensed as they observed, waiting to interfere at the slightest hint that things would become violent. Because if one side full-out attacked, it would take more than a few bolts and a welder to put the target back together again.

Penumbra was crouched low to the ground, quills bristled and teeth bared. No growls escaped his lips however, the silence causing more anticipation than if snarls bounced off the walls.

Omega was standing a good distance away from the striped hedgehog, his now fully functional arms dangling at his sides. He was seemingly at ease now, but everyone knew that he would retaliate if threatened.

They had explained to Penumbra – to the best of their ability – that the red and black mech wasn't the one he had known. They also had told Omega when he had booted back up – who had been in the garage, separate from any sharp quills – that Penumbra didn't mean any harm.

The two had understood, so they introduced them in the living room.

Which led to their current predicament, Penumbra looking like he was about to gut Omega and leave him irreparable, and said robot possibly leveling the whole home.

Tails and Cream were standing in the entrance of the kitchen. The kit's namesakes were twitching nervously while the bunny glanced in between the two parties, chocolate orbs unsure.

Sonic and Shadow were situated closer to the unstable duo. The blue speedster was tapping his shoe quietly against the floor with a hand on his hip, and the Ultimate Lifeform had his arms crossed, a pensive frown on his muzzle. Both ready to spring into action if the wilder side of Penumbra came out to play.

They all stood in the same positions for another minute or so before Penumbra closed his eyes, his sharpened expression relaxing a bit. The striped hedgie stood straight up, reopening his eyes, showing that they were more wary than aggressive. "You different. No attack." Nummy glanced over at Sonic and Shadow, lingering on the latter. A questionable pout appeared. "No like…"

"It doesn't matter if you like him or not," Shadow replied, his own muscles relaxing now he that wouldn't possibly have to tackle his twin to the ground. "He's not the one you have to worry about."

"I AM GLAD THAT YOU HAVE CHOSEN CORRECTLY, PENUMBRA." Said hedgehog clearly didn't favor the bot saying his name. "FOR I WOULD NOT HAVE YOU TARGET ME A SECOND TIME."

"Trust me, we _all_ are happy that it didn't become a warzone in here." Sonic chuckled briefly, running his fingers through his limp quills. "Good job usin' that head of yours, Nummy!"

Penumbra blinked at him before letting an unabashed smile grow on his muzzle. "Good job…" He then nodded proudly, clapping his hands happily.

Shadow let out a snort at that, not expecting it. "Some things don't change," he muttered to himself. Giving everything that his twin had gone through, he didn't think that those two words would trigger that same response.

"Whew…" Tails ran a hand down his face, snickering a bit. He was so relieved that he wouldn't have to do any repairs on his house. "That's a way to start off the day…"

"You can say that again, buddy." Sonic watched fondly as a giggling Cream bounded over to Penumbra and latched her arms around his waist. She was happy that Nummy hadn't rampaged, and she began to explain that Omega was actually a nice robot, the mech agreeing with her. Penumbra seemed doubtful of her words, but since it was _Cream_ , he was willing to listen.

The azure speedster was seriously glad that those two were free. They were both innocent – in their own way – and he desperately needed to thank Mephiles for going out there and getting them. Wherever he was…

"But anyway!" Tails throw a thumb over his shoulder, focusing on Sonic. "I'm going to go make the calls for everyone to meet up here. I don't think it's too early…"

Sonic tapped his chin before snapping his fingers, a mischievous grin on his face. "Yeah, go do that, but don't tell them why. Just say that it's a surprise!" When Shadow rolled his eyes at him, he justified, "It's more fun that way!"

"Whatever, Faker. If someone goes for Penumbra, I'm blaming you."

Sonic waved him off. "Nah, that won't happen! Especially with Cream all snuggled up to him and everythin'."

"He's right Shadow!" Tails backed up his brother, "Everyone knows if Cream likes someone, they _can't_ be bad!"

The Ultimate Lifeform responded with a dismissive grunt as the kit left the room. That's true, anyone who knew Cream would trust her judgement and give Penumbra a chance. However, about half of the people coming _didn't_ know Cream. He didn't think that anything would actually happen, but it didn't hurt to be cautious.

Any conversation was then cut off when there were knocks on the front door.

"I wonder who that is?" Sonic pondered out loud. Since Shadow was closest to the door, he slowly approached it, the same question echoing around in his mind. Tails had _just_ went to the garage to call, so unless one of his acquaintances had just discovered secret Chaos abilities, there was no way they could arrive so quickly.

Unless…

Shadow grasped the doorknob and peered over his shoulder. He focused on Penumbra, who was alert with his ears perked, before turning back around. It could be Rogue and Silver coming back from wherever they went to after they were finished with Penumbra. If it was the hedgehog/bat duo, then Shadow was going to step outside and have a few _choice_ words with them.

So when he opened the door only to find a red echidna staring back at him, he was a tad disappointed.

Shadow took a moment to examine the red mammal before him, eyes slightly narrowed. He noticed the relaxed stance, the somewhat ruffled dreads, and the lethargically raised brow. Once he identified which guardian this was, he nodded in greeting. "Knuckles," he uttered, bypassing nicknames altogether.

Red gave a curt wave in response. "Hey Shadow. I woke up early and-"

Shadow couldn't help but to interrupt him, not believing that he heard those words come out of this specific echidna's mouth. "You woke up…early?"

"Tell me about it." The red Mobian sighed, stretching his back. "The world has to be close to ending. I tried and failed to go back to sleep, so here I am. I figured that…" The echidna trailed off when something over Shadow's shoulder pulled at his attention. Violet orbs drifted over, and so many questions bombarded Red's brain all at one time. There was no way he could pick any intelligent ones out, so he just breathed, "…Why?"

'Why' as in _Why in the hell are both your Cream and Penumbra in the same room and no one is confused but me?_

Shadow sensed Red's puzzlement and simply stepped to the right, gesturing inside. When the echidna hesitated for a moment, the hedgehog exasperatedly stated, "It's safe. He isn't going to attack you."

Red gave him a sidelong glance before muttering, "Troublesome," and entering the home. He vaguely noticed Sonic and Omega as he did so, but his focus was all on the bunny and the striped hedgehog beside her who was tilting his head at him. Then, a bright smile covered most of Penumbra's face, and he lunged.

"Knuckles!" Red was too shocked to dodge before he was tackled, nearly thrown to the ground. He blinked in surprise at the tight hug he was receiving, the hedgie chuckling all the while. "Happy to see friend!" Red noticed his twitching tail.

Doing the only thing he could possibly do at the moment, the echidna patted the striped one cordially on his back. "Uh yeah, it's me. You've been…doing okay Nummy?"

Penumbra let him go, bending his knees in a somewhat crouching position, and grinned up at him. "Now I am!"

Red just nodded slowly at him before his questioning eyes landed on Shadow, who had closed the door. "Want to explain anything?"

Shadow gave him a level look, eventually shaking his head. He didn't feel like telling – or hearing – the story over and over again. They might as well just wait and tell it once when everyone was around. "We'll tell you after everybody arrives."

Red's lips twitched downwards. "So you're going to keep me _completely_ in the dark about how you rescued Cream and how Nummy practically did a one-eighty?"

"Pretty much, yeah!" Sonic answered with a smirk, figuring out and agreeing with Shadow's plan. "It's a great tale for story-time, don't you think?"

The echidna puffed out air in defeat, going over and making himself comfy on the bare sofa. "It's really not worth arguing about…"

Sonic leaned against the back of the couch, amused. "You really need to talk to Knux more, because man! He's more stubborn than Shads over there, and that's sayin' something."

Shadow inwardly sighed when Penumbra sent a perplexed look his way. "Shads?"

"Don't," the Ultimate Lifeform immediately chastised. He _didn't_ need any more people calling him that. Sonic and Rogue were more than enough. Nummy nodded after a second.

Red quietly scoffed at the blue hero's words. "No thank you. He'd end up yelling in my face and I really don't feel like dealing with that."

The speedster laughed, clapping him on the shoulder. "You'll get used to him eventually. He'll warm up to ya…sooner or later." He then stepped in the direction Tails went. "Imma go see how my lil bro's doing with the calls." He left whistling a low tune.

"Omega," Shadow called out and artificial eyes trained on him. The Ultimate Lifeform bobbed his head towards the front door. "Let's go outside. I need to test if all if you is still perfectly functional."

"DO I GET TO USE MY FLAMETHROWER?"

The ghost of a smirk appeared on Shadow's muzzle as he made his way to the exit. "Yes Omega, you get to use your flamethrower." Heavy footsteps followed him almost immediately. The hedgehog had opened the door and was about to cross the threshold when a voice stopped him.

"Back soon?" Penumbra was gazing at him expectantly. When Shadow curtly nodded, maroons glanced between him and Omega, lingering on the robot for a bit. Then they returned to interested rubies. Nummy's expression morphed, and his tone was stern. "Careful."

Shadow had to resist rolling his eyes. He was being told by his wild double to be _careful._ "Don't worry about me, Penumbra." He was about to leave, but then _another_ voice halted his progress.

"Where's Rogue and Silver?"

The striped hedgehog focused on Red, and said echidna saw the irritation swirling beneath those blazing irises. "You'll learn about them later," Shadow stated mysteriously and left the building with Omega in tow. Red furrowed his brow. He wasn't worried because they didn't seem to be worried, but still.

"Wait, so…" At the feminine voice, the echidna turned his attention to the bunny rounding the piece of furniture, those being her first words ever since he had arrived. She stopped in front of him, gaze calculating. "So you're Mr. Knuckles' twin?"

 _Mister?_ Red's mind went back to when the…other Cream was alive, and he couldn't name a time where she had used personal titles like that. This bunny seemed more innocent than the other, like she probably wouldn't kill a fly if she had to. Remembering their little campfire outside of the abandoned prison, he'd say that Shadow's words were right on the mark.

Done musing, he answered, "Yeah, I am."

Her eyes instantly brightened up as she took the spot beside him, slightly bouncing on the cushion. She giggled when Penumbra climbed up beside her, curling up like a housecat. "So you're friends with my twin? Can you tell me what she's like? Mr. Sonic told me that she stayed where you came from!"

Red understood why they would withhold her double's death from her. She's been through too much already. The echidna wasn't sure that he was up to the task of pulling on those horrible memories, but at the excited glint in those brown orbs, he knew that he didn't have a choice.

Keeping his tone positive, he described her.

It was hard to speak in the present tense.

* * *

"So what do you think this little surprise is?" Rouge asked her walking buddy as they traveled through the woods to reach the fox/hedgehog home. The morning sunlight filtered through the swaying leaves, creating mini spotlights on the grassy ground.

"I'd hardly call it a surprise," Knuckles grumbled, pushing away a branch in his path, breaking it in the process because of the amount of power he put in the swing. His footfalls were just short of stomps. Knuckles' stormy stare was straight forward. "Sonic's just being Sonic, and Tails is following up after him. I bet it's just Silver and _Rogue_ being awake."

Rouge didn't miss the way the guardian spat the male bat's name. She rose a brow. "Woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?"

"Well, I'm _sorry_ for being agitated!" Knuckles suddenly yelled out through gritted teeth, waving his arms in the air. "The Master Emerald's _stolen_ and I'm about to meet the person who _stabbed_ one of my friend's eyes out!" He had every right to be angry. They'd think that they hit rock bottom only to be smacked in the face with something _worse._

It was quiet for a moment. There were no sounds other than the crunching of grass below and the chirping of birds above. Rouge subtly pursed her lips, understanding the echidna. Ever since that evil chameleon made the first play, everything's been going downhill. And unlike other situations, an end wasn't in sight.

However, that didn't give Knuckles a pass to be like this. Just because they couldn't see an end, it didn't mean that there wasn't one.

Rouge plucked a leaf off of a low hanging branch and rotated it through her gloved fingers. "Don't think for a second that you're alone in this, Knuckie." She smirked at the irritated huff that forced its way out of the guardian's mouth. "I hate the fact that the Master Emerald's in the hands of someone else as much as you do."

"I seriously doubt that," Knuckles muttered.

The agent ignored him. "And what Rogue did wasn't intentional hon. Well, it was, but it wasn't. I personally can't wait to meet him."

"Of course you can't," the echidna said under his breath, not for the other to hear.

Unfortunately, he'd been underestimating the strength of a bat's ears.

Rouge heard his off tone and giggled, flapping her wings to float in the air directly in front of the echidna, flying slowly backwards. An amused grin grew. "And what do you mean by that, sugar? It's just like meeting up with a long lost sibling. Or maybe…" She tapped her chin, Knuckles frowning at her. "If he's interesting enough, then I could easily get rid of those family ties, because technically…"

She couldn't keep in the chuckle as Knuckles pushed passed her, glare set. "You're _insane_ , bat. I hope you know that." He marched forward, her following him through the air. "It has to be something with you winged mammals. Your species isn't _normal_ after all."

"And yours is?" Rouge rebutted, "Because I'm _sure_ mammals lay eggs _all_ the time."

Knuckles blinked. _Touché._ "Just shut up, bat-girl. I'm not crazy."

"Whatever you say hon."

"It's not 'whatever I say'! _You-_ " The rest of the echidna's words died on his lips once their destination was within sight. They almost reached the end of the tree-line, the front yard clearly seen from where the duo was standing. And what he saw almost made him stumble in his step. "Um, what?"

"Hm?" Rouge glanced at him before following his line of sight, and she knew exactly what he was referring to. She held her hand up to her mouth, giggling behind her palm. "Looks like Shadow decided to get in touch with his feminine side today."

Shadow was sitting in the lawn with his back to them, a flower crown around his head. Next to him was Tails, who was leaning back on one hand and adjusting the floral piece he had apparently made for himself.

Rouge shook her head in jest. "Stress affects people in different ways, I suppose."

Knuckles didn't say anything in reply, for he wasn't focusing on the striped hedgehog and fox. His violet orbs were locked onto the _bunny_ picking flowers a couple of yards away from the flower clad pair.

"…Cream?" His voice was barely a whisper.

But, again, Rouge caught it. "Cream?" she repeated dubiously before she saw the rabbit as well, who was now hopping back over to Shadow and Tails with petals in her hands. Her breath caught in her throat, mind temporarily blanking. "That's…That's Cream! How did she-?"

"There's only one way to find out!" Knuckles ran out in the open and Rouge was right on his tail, wings working to keep her in the air.

Tails was the first to notice them. His expression brightened as he waved. "Hey guys!" Cream was next, and she nearly dropped her flowers in excitement. Shadow was last, looking confused as he peered over his shoulder.

As soon as Rouge saw those eyes, she knew that he wasn't Shadow. She grabbed a couple of red dreads before braking midair, grounding herself and causing the echidna to gasp in shock and pain. He rounded on her. "What the _hell-_ "

"That isn't Shadow," she cut him off, widened teals examining the striped hedgehog in front of them. He was staring at Knuckles with a small frown on his muzzle before switching over to Rouge. His whole body tensed, but then it relaxed, him cocking his head like he couldn't figure something out. The walls that Rouge had put up crumbled a bit, the image she was seeing not matching up with the picture in her mind.

She just now noticed that Knuckles was staring at her crazily. She added to her previous statement. "That's Penumbra."

"Penumbra?!" The guardian snapped his head forward and noticed that she was right. There were a lot of similarities, but that was _definitely_ not Shadow. Knuckles gritted his teeth, torn between going over to greet Cream and ask his many questions or going over to sock the striped hedgehog a good one. It was a tough choice.

"Don't worry, he doesn't bite." Rouge and Knuckles found the owner of the new voice. It was Red, lounging against the side of the house with his hands linked behind his head. "Unless you bite him first."

Rouge had never been so confused. "If you have any idea of what's going on, sugar," she started, regarding Knuckles, "I'm all ears."

"I've…got nothing." Knuckles responded incredulously.

They didn't do anything but stare as Cream bounded over to them. She gave the pair brief hugs before handing over a couple of flowers. "I got rescued from the mean Espio! Now we're waiting for everyone else so they can know too!" She then used both of her hands to grab theirs, and she led them back over to Tails and Penumbra. "Please don't be scared of Mr. Penumbra! He's really nice!" The bunny let go and gestured to them, smiling brightly. "This is Ms. Rouge and Mr. Knuckles! My friends!"

Silence. Nummy was still staring at Rouge.

"Well…This is awkward…" Tails mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Trust me on this, there was a reason he uh…attacked Sonic's and Shadow's group earlier. He isn't a threat now, honest."

Rouge was still iffy about the whole thing, but if Tails and _Cream_ trusted him, then… She waved a hand in greeting, genially smiling. "Hello, hon."

Penumbra blinked up at her, gaze flickering over to Knuckles, before settling on her once more. "Friends with Cream?"

He sounded almost exactly the same as Shadow, if not a bit gruffer. Rouge nodded. "We're basically all friends here sugar."

"Don't lie to him. He's no friend of _mine._ " Surprised at that growl, Rouge turned to her neighbor to see him scowling, fists clenched.

In response to this, black ears plastered against Penumbra's head and elongated canines were bared. Tails, having a sinking feeling in his gut, advised, "Knuckles…I _really_ don't think that's a good idea."

"I don't care!" The guardian yelled, jabbing a finger in Nummy's direction. " _He's_ the reason that we don't have the Master Emerald! I'm not going to be all _buddy-buddy_ with him!" He continued to glare even when Penumbra began to snarl, standing up on his two feet, maroon irises aflame. Knuckles wasn't backing down. "You _don't_ intimidate me. I don't care about what kind of _reasoning_ you have! I'm going to-"

"Please stop!" Both the echidna and hedgehog glanced down when Cream stepped between them two, her facing the guardian. Chocolate orbs begged up at Knuckles. "Please don't make Mr. Penumbra mad, Mr. Knuckles! He's really nice! Don't blame him, blame the evil Espio! He didn't mean it," She looked at Nummy, "Right?"

Penumbra nodded at her before refocusing on Knuckles, glare not decreasing in wattage. However, he still uttered, "Sorry."

The guardian crossed his arms and scoffed. "You don't _sound_ like it." When the hedgehog didn't respond, clearly still agitated, Cream held his hand and guided him over to a patch of flowers.

"You need to get better at making friends, Knuckles." Rouge sighed. Yes, Penumbra had been an obstacle before, but _obviously_ he had been persuaded to do so somehow.

The echidna ignored her. "Tails, where's Sonic? I need to talk to him."

The kit gestured away from the house. "He went for a run. He said that he'd be back soon, but who knows how long that'll be…"

Knuckles huffed. "Great."

"What about Shadow?" Rouge asked, watching as Cream tucked a flower behind a now smiling Nummy's ear. It was going to take a while to get used to that. "Does he know that his twin is here?"

"Sure does." The answer didn't come from Tails. Red approached them, languidly scratching his side. He stopped beside the fox. "He was here earlier. Omega was fixed up, and they went somewhere so Shadow could test him."

The bat hummed, her gaze stuck on the duo in the background. "So I'm guessing that those two were the actual surprises." Red and Tails affirmed that. She pursed her lips. "Okay then, where's Rogue and Silver?"

Tails chuckled nervously, and the echidna/bat duo were suddenly put on guard. "Well, you see… They aren't…here…at the moment."

"Wha-? What do you mean that _they aren't here?_ "

"Exactly what you think it means," Red drawled out in response to Knuckles. The guardian sent him a sour look.

"Well, where are they?" Rouge questioned. Why in the world were they gone? They were all bloodied up just yesterday!

Tails shrugged. "We have no idea, but we know for sure that they're alright. They'll be back."

Rouge thought for a moment, putting things together. Then she spoke. "So you're telling me that they had woken up sometime between now and yesterday and snuck out of the house?"

"…Technically, yes."

"See? I _told_ you that bats are crazy," Knuckles snapped.

"Don't forget that Silver is with him too, hon."

"He's always been a little…off," Red said, "And given all that he'd possibly been through, I'm not surprised. They're just getting a breath of fresh air."

"So what do we do now, just wait?" Knuckles grumbled.

"…Cream can make you a flower crown?" Tails suggested with a snicker.

"I'll pass."

* * *

"I'm not getting out."

"Oh come _on-_ "

"No."

"But he looks so nice! Look! He's smiling at everyone! And don't you want to say hi to Cream? I know I do!"

"I know, Charmy, but…" Espio inwardly sighed as he gazed out at the front yard, seeing the multitude of interactions going on. When they had pulled up at the edge of the clearing, they immediately zeroed in on Cream who was playing with Shadow. However, the smiles and laughter coming from said hedgehog let them know that they were looking at _Penumbra._

At first, no one moved, hesitant. But then, Espio guessed that curiosity got the better of Rosy, TT, VC, and CB. They ran over, half awed at how precious Cream was and half confused about Penumbra. After they all 'introduced' themselves, the bunny gave everyone hugs. While she made conversation with Rosy, Tails, and TT, Nummy went over and high-fived the bee and croc. The bee then situated himself on the hedgehog's head, eyes watering, saying over and over again that they were sorry for leaving him behind in the snow.

Charmy wasn't over there because he was trying – and failing – to convince Espio to get out of the jeep…and to make himself visible.

The chameleon glanced at the insect hovering by his door before eying the crowd once more. It wasn't that he was frightened by this new development. He'd _seen_ what Penumbra could do, and him just showing up could be enough to set him off. Espio could bet everything he had that the striped hedgehog hated his evil twin, and now that both Espios looked so _similar…_

And there was also the fact that Cream may be scared of his new appearance as well.

Invisible fingers tightened around the steering wheel. _I don't blame Rogue, but did he have to make things so difficult?_

"I'd rather not start anything, is all," he said, continuing his thought.

Charmy puffed his cheeks, feeling a bit weird talking to an empty space. "So you're just gonna sit here the whole time?!"

"No he isn't." Both detectives blinked at the unexpected voice, and turned to see Knuckles walking towards them. The echidna's disappearance apparently didn't gain anyone else's attention. The guardian greeted a hello to Charmy before staring into the driver's seat. "Espio, I know that you're good at it, but you don't need to hide. Cream is going to be fine after explaining everything to her, and well, I've been wanting to punch Penumbra in the face, so him pouncing you is a good enough reason as any."

The chameleon eventually made himself visible, hands slipping off the wheel. His single amber iris was somewhat dull. "I'm trying to avoid violence, Knuckles."

"Well, at this point in time, it's inevitable."

"Why do you want to punch him though?" Charmy asked, hovering around the guardian. "Penumbra hasn't attacked anybody out there! He's good I think!"

"It's his fault that we don't have the Master Emerald," Knuckles grunted out, "I'll just give him a little tap. Nothing much."

Charmy pouted but didn't say anything else as Espio got out.

And as soon as he did so, sharp maroon orbs somehow found a way to zero in on him.

The effect was instant.

All laughter and smiles were erased only to be replaced with a deep scowl, growls pushing past those bared teeth. Claws dug into the ground as Penumbra crouched, quills bristling as he glared poison at the ninja. The Mobians surrounding him gave him space, surprised at his sudden transformation. Well, most of them stepped back.

Cream just stared wide-eyed at him before focusing on whatever gotten him so riled up. She gasped at the sight of Espio standing beside Knuckles and Charmy. Before the bunny could duck behind Nummy, the hedgehog protectively hopped in front of her, anger radiating off of him. However, if one looked close enough, one could see the absolute fear in his eyes.

"He looks really mean now…" Charmy gulped.

"Knuckles," Espio began lowly, "I don't think-"

"It'll be _fine_ , Espio," the guardian interrupted him. "Just let them explain."

"M-Mr. Knuckles! Charmy! G-Get away from the evil Espio!" Cream shouted out, shivering behind Penumbra.

The Mobians on the sidelines knew that they had to do interfere before something, or some _one_ , snapped.

"Cream!" Rouge yelled over the snarls, figuring that once they told the bunny the truth, then she'd be able to calm Penumbra back down. When the rabbit glanced the agent's way, she continued, "That's the good Espio! The one _we_ know, alright? He just…got in an accident."

"An…accident?" The bunny repeated, still wary. "Are you…are you sure?"

"She's right Cream!" Tails tiptoed up behind her, not wanting to catch Nummy's attention. He put a hand on her shoulder and gave a small smile. "That's our Espio, the good one. He just got hurt. He isn't going to hurt us, promise!"

Cream searched his face for any lies before nodding, swallowing thickly. After taking a deep breath – and pushing back bad memories – she placed a comforting hand on Penumbra's back. "It's…It's okay Mr. Penumbra! That Espio is the double of the one you know! He's nice, and our friend!"

At first, no one knew if Nummy even heard her or not, but then his snarls quieted down. He peered back at her. "Friend? Sure?" He didn't relax from his fight or flight position.

"Yeah…" she replied unsurely at first, but after getting a _good_ look at Espio, she brightened up a bit. "Yeah!"

Penumbra was silent, eying her before concentrating on Espio once more. Maroon orbs narrowed, but his quills dropped anyway, and his glower melted away into a more neutral expression. Caution never left that gaze of his.

The group collectively let out a sigh of relief.

Cream smiled at him before skipping over to the purple chameleon, Nummy reaching out for her too late. His fingers grasped nothing but air.

The rabbit bounced up to Espio. She then tilted her head a bit, expression concerned. "What kind of accident did you have, Mr. Espio?"

The reptile didn't have to look up to know that the others were silently shaking their heads. Lying to her felt wrong on multiple levels, but he had to. "My twin did this to me." She didn't have to know about the misunderstanding.

Cream gazed at him sadly, but before she could say anything, Penumbra unexpectedly butted in. "No." His voice was powerful and sure. The striped hedgehog approached the ninja, eventually standing at Cream's side. He focused on the wrappings around the left side of the chameleon's face. "I…attack you after Espio leave. He no-"

Red went over and promptly clamped a mitt over Nummy's mouth, cutting off the rest of his sentence. "Of all people…" he muttered under his breath. Penumbra tried to wiggle out of his hold, but Red just held him tighter. "Nope, ironically, you talk too much."

"…What?" Cream inquired, but no one got a chance to answer her because three new additions to the group acted as a distraction.

"Hey everyone!" Amy called out while waving, the rest of the Mobians turning towards her. She seemed cheerful, but it wasn't completely genuine. Vector was walking on one side of her, his mood no better, and Vanilla was on the other side, trying and failing to hide her sadness.

The pinkette glanced around at the sizeable crowd. "I guess that we're one of the last ones to get-" She paused when Cream came into focus, and it seemed like the trio noticed her at the exact same time. Amy's green orbs began to moisten. "C-Cream?"

Vector's jaw was scraping the ground. "It...It IS her!"

Words couldn't make it past Vanilla's lips. A storm of emotions welled up beside her before she ran.

"Mama…" Cream's eyes dampened as well, and she sprinted towards her mother with her arms wide open. The Mobians in the way parted for the duo, sad smiles on their faces. "Mama!" the bunny repeated louder as tears fell from her cheeks.

Penumbra watched on in slight confusion until recognition flashed in his eyes when he saw Vanilla. Images of suits and guns pushed themselves to the front of his mind, and he hissed behind Red's hand.

The echidna felt how his captive tensed up, and he knew why in a heartbeat. He gripped him even tighter. "Don't you dare think about ruining this," Red chastised sharply, "Vanilla's a friend too." The hedgehog's muscles eventually relaxed, but his chest continuously rumbled, a growl threatening to become audible.

When Red returned his attention to the mother/daughter duo, they had met spectacularly. Cream was cuddled up in Vanilla's arms, the mom having dropped to her knees from the overflow of happiness. The bunny's tears at first were cheerful, but then they morphed into something more sorrowful. Her cries were loud even though they were muffled by Vanilla's shoulder.

Cream didn't deserve everything she had gone through.

The rabbit was whispering soothing words into her child's ear, rubbing her back when she developed hiccups. Amy joined in soon after, wrapping her arms around both of them as she cried. Happy for their reunion, but sad because of the dear friend Cream lost.

They embraced for another minute or so before Amy and Vanilla pulled back, the latter's hands on Cream's shoulders as she gazed at her fondly. "I missed you so much, Cream."

Streams of tears were present down the bunny's cheeks, but she still managed to give a shaky grin. "I-I missed you too Mama! I missed you so much…I missed everyone…" Cream glanced at Amy before shifting over at Vector who was sniffling behind them. She then peered over her shoulder at the remaining group, beaming brightly. "I missed you all…and am happy that I met new friends too!"

The trio stood back up, and Amy swept the crowd standing in the front yard with her lips curled up. Well, that was until her jades focused on Red and someone who was too ruffled and discolored to be Shadow. She and Vector exchanged a highly concerned look, and seeing this, Red let Penumbra go and breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't lunge. "He's on our side, don't worry. Cream will vouch for me."

The young rabbit, eyes nearly dried, nodded. "Yep! Mr. Penumbra's my friend!"

Amy hesitantly nodded back, hoping for a full explanation later. "That's…good. I'm glad you got to meet everyone!"

"Me too! I-" Cream paused, placing a finger on her chin. "But I didn't… Where's Mr. Sonic's twin? I wanna meet him!"

Even Vanilla looked uncertain about fulfilling that request.

"Ha! I win!" Most were relieved that the awkward atmosphere had been erased by the words shouted by a familiar hero. A multitude of eyes shifted over to the tree-line, where both Sonic and Shadow were currently standing, subtly panting. "Admit it! I got you this time!"

"I BELIEVE THAT NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO DISPUTE." Omega pushed through bushes to reveal himself.

Shadow gave one look at the large group and grunted out, "I agree with Omega. Me arguing that you lost isn't a priority at the moment."

Sonic was about to continue it anyway, but then he saw Vanilla and Cream in his peripheral and he decided to cut the act short. For now. "Looks like I missed the big reunion!" He scratched his nose, guiltily grinning. "Sorry 'bout that!" The trio closed the distance between the two groups.

"It's okay Sonic!" Amy skipped over to him before giving the speedster a tight hug. "You're forgiven! Especially because you saved Cream! Thank you _so_ much!"

 _She automatically thinks that Faker did it,_ Shadow subtly shook his head, _As expected of her._

"Ack! Amy!" Sonic positioned his hands so that he could push her away – gently, of course. He held her at arm's length. "As much as I'm flattered that you think I saved her, I can't take the credit this time!"

The pinkette blinked. "What? Then who?"

The azure speedster felt a lot of curious gazes on him, but after a scan of the crowd, he noticed that the actual hero wasn't anywhere to be found. _I mean, he's with the other me, right? They'll show up sometime, and I bet Mephy would've told Boom everything by then._

"Mephiles!" Sonic chirped.

"Mephiles?!" Several surprised voices rung out.

The blue speedster chuckled. "Yeah! I wouldn't lie about somethin' like this! Mephy went to Eggy's lab, used that neat little power of his, and busted both Cream and Nummy out!"

Vector eyed the striped hedgehog who was now semi-crouching innocently. "About Penumbra…What's the story on him? Why the heck did he attack you guys before?"

"Apparently the evil Espio was using Cream as ransom for both him _and_ us. He didn't want her hurt, so he followed orders." Shadow put it simply. "And it didn't help matters that Penumbra was shocked as well."

Cream pushed her pointer fingers together. "It was terrible! They hurt Mr. Penumbra real bad…"

It all made sense now. Rouge sent a wry smirk in Knuckles' direction. "Feel horrible yet?"

The guardian was glaring at the grass at his feet. "Shuddup, bat."

"But where is Mephy now?" Rosy asked, TT at her side being as worried as she was at the moment. "I assumed that he spent the night at your and Tails' house, Sonic?"

Said hedgie shrugged. "I actually don't know where he is, but I _do_ know that he's with Boom, so yeah."

Red's breath hitched. He was the first to respond. "…And you're not _worried_ about that? How long has Mephiles been with him?"

Shadow rose a brow at the echidna's less-than-relaxed state. "Since last night. Why?"

Red _couldn't_ believe that they hadn't put this together earlier. "Mephiles rescued Cream and Penumbra, so that means that he knows where the secret lab is. If he is with _Sonic_ right now then-"

Ruby irises widened. _Shit._

The rest of the group caught on as well, and panicked murmurs filled the air.

"They went to find it-"

"-and they aren't back yet-"

"-so they have to be in trouble!"

Sonic tapped his foot against the ground, rightfully stressed. "This is bad," he muttered before whispering to Shadow, "What do we do, Shads? We don't know where it is, Eggy hasn't _done_ anything to give away the location, and my double has been gone _way_ too long."

"Doesn't he have a Chaos emerald? We can track that energy with Tails'-"

"But his tracker won't pick up the emerald's weak output though, not right now anyway," Sonic rebutted, a hand on his hip. "We need to get to them like _now_. Who knows what's goin' on…"

"If we can't track them by picking up the energy…" Shadow was deep in thought for a second before a lightbulb went off in his head. "We can do it by picking up their sent. Penumbra!" He barked, regaining the attention of the crowd. Nummy had perked up. "Find Mephiles' or the _other_ Sonic's scent. Can you do that?"

Penumbra didn't verbally answer him. The striped hedgehog separated himself from the quietly observing group, nose low to the ground as the traversed the clearing on all fours.

"He's senses are more heightened than mine," Shadow told anyone interested enough to listen. He watched Nummy disappear into the trees, and his hopes rose somewhat. However, it was for naught when Penumbra came back looking distraught.

"Weak. No follow." Nummy told them, and Shadow inwardly cursed again.

"Wh-What…" TT began, his namesakes twitching as they swished around, "W-What about S-Silver and R-Rogue? Don't th-they know where it is?"

"They do, kiddo, but we don't know where they are either," Sonic said bluntly, too distracted to soften any blows.

Silence, then: " _What?!_ "

"Those two snuck out or something, right Blue?" The speedster regretfully nodded.

"They wouldn't go back as well, would they?" Espio wondered out loud.

"They shouldn't!" VC yelled out, sounding like he's trying to convince himself. "They wouldn't!"

Knuckles was silent, fists harshly clenched.

No matter what, things _always_ got worse.

* * *

"Aw…that's so sweet!"

Rogue tore his observing teals off of the scene below them to peer around the trunk of the tree he was leaning against, throwing Silver a jeering smirk. "Whoa man, you crying over there?"

"No!" The white hedgehog, sitting on a branch, wiped his eyes furiously. "I'm not crying, _you're_ crying!"

The bat chuckled, feeling the breeze against his face as he glanced down at the sizable group once more. They had found their way back to the house just in time to see Cream and Vanilla meet back up with each other, the rest of their friends watching on.

Rogue then focused on one of the Amy's, the one hugging it out with the two rabbits. _Ever since we left, I had a feeling that Espio really didn't have her._ So they had infiltrated that chameleon's base for no reason…

Eh…it was all in the past now. There was no changing it.

The bat's attention drifted off of her and onto the purple chameleon down below, the wrappings around his head clear as day. Rogue subtly frowned, wondering how'd they actually be received when they decided to stop watching from the trees and show their faces.

That frown eventually morphed into a grin when he zeroed in on the other bat down there. Yeah, he couldn't wait to meet _her._

"Those are all of your friends?" A childlike voice sounded from above them. Bokkun, standing on a limb, watched as two more hedgehogs and a huge robot emerged from the trees a distance away. "Why in the world would they want to be _friends_ with you two idiots?"

"Because we're _nice,_ " Silver grumbled, cheeks puffing out, "Unlike a _certain_ toy I know!"

"I'm _not_ a-"

"Hey dudes, couldja quiet it down?" Rogue rolled his eyes. "I don't know if you realize this, but I _am_ tryin' to listen here."

Silver chuckled contritely, swinging his legs alternatively back and forth. "My bad! And it looks like they are actually talking about something important down there…"

It turned out they were. There was talk about Mephiles being a hero and about Penumbra's incentives. Rogue focused on said striped hedgehog to see him all healed up from their little…rumble last night. Now they were even, sorta. The bat still thought that they should deal some more damage to equal the torture they had been through, but he guessed that they clearly made their point.

Now the group was going over the fact that Mephiles was with Sonic…and was possibly at the secret lab right now. If they actually were, they were about to have one hell of an experience because that chameleon was most likely pissed off. Too mad to kill them.

"They're kinda panicking down there. Should we go now?" Silver carefully stood up on his branch after Penumbra had sniffed around, quills rustling behind him. "They're basically asking for us. And plus, we don't want Mephy and Sonic to go through what we went through, right?"

Rogue's wings flared out. "Mephy, no. Blue…it's questionable." They both snickered while Bokkun was left out of the loop, glancing between them like they had gone senile. "Alright, let's make our grand entrance!" The bat left their hideout in the trees, Silver following after him with his powers, and Bokkun flying beside the psychic with his awesome jetpack that the little bot eventually learned how to use.

"They shouldn't!" One of the crocs shouted, and the two mammals suspected it was the one they were familiar with. "They wouldn't!"

The trio touched down surprisingly undetected. Rogue planted a grin on his muzzle and linked his fingers behind his head. "Hell no we wouldn't. That'd been _really_ stupid bro."

All eyes were suddenly on them.

Rogue's grin grew at the attention. "'Sup?"

Silver smiled and waved. "Heya guys! Long time no see!"

CB was the first to move. "SILVER!" He screamed before launching himself at the unprepared hedgehog, sending the psychic staggering.

However, Silver was laughing as he hugged the insect back. "It's been a while, huh Charmy?"

"Too long!" The bee responded, sniffing. "I'm so glad that you and Rogue are okay!"

"That makes two of us!" VC bounded up to Rogue and held a fist out to pound. The bat bumped it enthusiastically. "You two scared the hell out of me!"

"Well," Rogue rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry 'bout that Vec. We – Oof!"

He grunted when most of his air was forced out of his lungs. Rogue's gaze flickered down to see pink. Rosy was embracing him, eyes moist. "D-Don't apologize! I'm just happy that you two are back and alright!" The pinkette let him go before wrapping her arms about Silver, who returned the gesture. "If you would've seen what you _looked_ like…"

"I'm glad we didn't…" Silver muttered as she pulled away.

Rosy wiped away any tears that threatened to spill. After she did so, she rose a brow at the third member she had never seen before. "Is that…a robot?"

"See!" Bokkun pointed at the girl, giving both Rogue and Silver vexed looks. "How come she could tell what I was and you two _couldn't_?"

He was ignored.

"This here is Bokkun." The male bat gestured to the small mech. "Our little robot _pet._ "

The tiny machine gasped, but before he could get any words out, he was cut off. "We can save all of this introductory stuff for _later._ " Shadow marched up to them, a no-nonsense expression on his face. VC, CB, and Rosy wisely moved out of his way. The Ultimate Lifeform stopped right in front of the duo, hardened rubies snapping back and forth. "We have business to take care of."

"Jeez Shads, kinda killin' the vibe here." Rogue huffed. "Look, sorry for bailin' on you guys last night-"

"No you aren't," Shadow hissed lowly, "Cut the act." His ruby orbs clearly stated, _We'll talk about_ _ **that**_ _later._ "Where is Eggman's lab?" he asked at a louder volume.

Rogue and Silver shared a glance, knowing that they were going to get an earful later on. The psychic scratched his head, thinking. "I don't know the name of the city, but it was abandoned, if that helps."

The bat flipped his hand. "The roads were messed up, buildings were trashed, cars were flipped, and there were craters everywhere. Not a pretty sight."

Shadow imagined what they described, and from what he had experienced, he only could recall one city in that condition. Eggman would choose _that_ spot to build. "Westopolis," he growled out.

"So you know the place? Awesome!" Silver fist pumped, "And we can lead you right to the base!"

"Wait a minute," Rouge stepped up with a thoughtful frown on her face. "You want to go back there, despite everything that has happened to you?"

Rogue looked her over and grinned. "'Course Roo. Can't pass up a chance to rescue Blue and Mephy _and_ a chance to pay that chameleon another visit. And you know, the trip'll be even better if you rode along."

Silver inwardly sighed. _They haven't known each other for two minutes…_

The G.U.N agent blinked, too thrown off by the nickname to give an apt response. Knuckles didn't hesitate to stomp over and jab a finger in the male bat's chest. Irritated violets were boring into questioning teals. "If she's going, _I'm_ going! And that is _not_ her name! It's _Rouge_ , remember it, bat!"

Rogue cocked his head, not intimidated at all by the echidna in front of him. "Well you can't be the lazy bones I know." The bat searched the area until he made eye contact with the red Mobian he was looking for. Red shook his head in exasperation, and Rogue smirked before regarding Knuckles once more, " _He_ isn't a guard dog with all bark and no bite. But it's alright man." He placed a hand on Knuckles' shoulder. "I'll abide by the bro code. You clearly have a thing for her, so I'll back off."

Knuckles' turned the color of a tomato. No one could tell if it was because of rage or because of something else. He sputtered, hardly managing to form words. "I-I'm not… _S-She's_ not-" He whirled around to face an impatient Shadow. "Can we _go_ now?!"

"You're readin' my mind, Knux!" Sonic took this moment to hop into the conversation, coming over to stand by an extremely amused Rouge. "As much as I love meetin' back up with pals," the hero's tone was light, but it didn't exactly match with those emeralds gazing at Rogue and Silver. "We have friends to save! We need to get going!"

Shadow wasn't surprised that the Faker tagged himself along; he knew that it going to happen. Also, having more members would be better than less in this scenario, given that they would need to infiltrate and possibly fight. No, violence would be inevitable. The evil Espio had to know that they were going to rescue Mephiles and Boom eventually. He needed a team that was equal in strength, speed, and stealth. No liabilities just in case things got messy.

Sonic, Rogue, Silver, Rouge, and Knuckles were going. He had no problem with that. With Rogue and Silver, he was a bit hesitant, but then he needed them to find the lab and to navigate it. They should know the layout, right?

"How familiar are you two with the lab?" Shadow quickly questioned.

Silver shrugged. "Stayed in one room the whole time I was there. Plus, I was kinda _blindfolded._ "

"Ditto, minus the blindfold part," Rogue replied before pursing his lips. "But I'm sure that _Penumbra_ could navigate the place just fine."

Shadow narrowed his eyes at him, then he scanned the group for his twin. He found Nummy right at the edge of the loose circle, crouched low to the ground with his ears flattened and cautious maroons not looking away from the newest bat/hedgehog duo. He wasn't trying to intimidate; he was trying to cower away.

The Ultimate Lifeform breathed harshly through his nose. "Rogue, Silver, Rouge, Knuckles, Penumbra, Faker, and I are going. The rest of you stay here and protect yourselves even though I doubt anyone would come here. No arguments." Unlike with the last split up, there weren't any. Shadow gave Red a subtle nod – he was in charge – before gesturing over to Nummy. There was another perk with Nummy going; the evil Espio would not be able to sneak up on them. "Penumbra, get over here."

Cream frowned at his obvious reluctance. "Why is Mr. Penumbra acting like that?"

"He doesn't want to potentially face the other Espio." Shadow threw out that believable answer, avoiding the actual reason. "But he has to because both Sonic and Mephiles are in _trouble._ Penumbra, come _here_."

It was true that if his twin went along, Silver and Rogue didn't have to go since Nummy could possibly lead them to the lab. However, Shadow had a feeling that telling them to stay would cause unnecessary conflict, like last night.

Penumbra finally tore his attention away from the newcomers to silently plead to Shadow. When the Ultimate Lifeform didn't budge, Nummy gave a weak growl before trotting over to the striped hedgehog's side. Now, he kept his gaze off of Rogue and Silver, highly uncomfortable.

Both albinos were smug while Knuckles and Rouge were perplexed. Sonic and Shadow shared a knowing look before the latter uttered, "Chaos Control."

When they disappeared in a ball of light, Bokkun resisted the urge to gape. Those two had left him alone surrounded by _strangers!_ Those _idiots!_ Stranger danger! Ooo…He was gonna…

"Hi! Your name is Bokkun right?" The robot startled a bit at that question, turning his head to become face-to-face with the little bunny, Cream, if he remembered right. Her chocolate orbs were big and glistening and impossible to say no to. The girl smiled. "Do you want to pick flowers with me until they come back with Mr. Sonic's twin and Mr. Mephiles?"

…He was gonna pick some flowers.

* * *

Shadow stumbled somewhat when he landed, cursing the low level energy output of the emerald tucked in his quills. Westopolis was farther from Faker's home than Central City was, and transporting a group of people didn't help matters much.

At least he got them to their destination.

There was a heavy cloud cover which blocked the morning light's bright yellow rays, blanketing the deserted city in grey. It was somewhat humid as well, no winds moving the stuffy air. It seemed like either it just rained, or it was about to. Given the large puddles on the asphalt, Shadow assumed that the former occurred.

There was a nudge on his side. Sonic grinned at him, rotating his shoulders. "Definitely more peaceful than the last time we were here, huh Shads?"

"A severe understatement," he grunted, hearing Penumbra softly whine at just the _sight_ of the city.

Silver was extremely curious, but he knew that he wasn't going to be enlightened any time soon. "Long story?" he asked aloud.

Knuckles nodded at him. "Long story."

Rogue hummed to himself before giving Rouge a sidelong glance, lips curled. "Will I get a story-time later on, Roo?"

The agent met his stare and knew that Knuckles was listening in. She smirked. "Pick the time and place, sugar."

Silver cupped his mouth. "Get a room!"

The echidna whirled on them. "How about no! How about you two," he pointed to the psychic and the male bat, "Go do what we came here to do! Take us to the lab!"

"C'mon dude, don't be rude. Can I get a please?"

"How about I just _throttle-_ "

"Silver, Rogue, this is not a _game._ " If looks could kill, the male albinos would have been dead ten times over. Shadow's tone was neutral, but it promised pain in the near future. "Of all people, I would think _you two_ would know that."

Rogue held his hands up in surrender. "Chill man, I was just-" Shadow's glare became harsher, and the rest of his words died on his lips. "Alright, alright… Let's go Silv. We gotta lead the pack." He flapped his wings before pushing forward with a glowing Silver at his side. Teals and golds flickered all around. They vaguely remembered where the entrance was, but not the exact location. They hoped that one of the leaning buildings would jog their memory.

"Well," Sonic started as Rouge got airborne as well, grabbing Knuckles' raised wrists. Shadow and Penumbra had already begun to trail after Rogue and Silver. "I know that after this, Imma have a _whole_ buncha laughs." He snickered mostly at Knuckles before running off.

"I hate him," Knuckles muttered as he was carried.

Rouge grinned. "Which one?"

"Both."

* * *

"It's that open hatch," Silver whispered as he pointed at the trapdoor. Him and Rogue were standing to the side of it, waiting for the others to get closer. The psychic let out a shaky breath. "I-I don't know why its open though, m-maybe they are onto u-us? D-Do they already know that w-we're here!?"

"Calm down dude," Rogue soothed, "You can't go in there all scared like that!"

"You won't be going in at all," Shadow said, approaching the door with a frown. At Rogue's shocked expression, he explained. "You and Silver are keeping watch out here just in case someone returns."

"But-"

"Don't argue. Just stand out here, _silently_."

Silver, over his scaredy-cat episode, crossed his arms and scoffed. "Fine," he puffed, indignant, "But if something happens to you all down there-"

"You're worrin' about the wrong people, Silver." Sonic winked at him. "We do stuff like this all the time. Compared to us, y'all are newbies to the whole 'fighting evil' thing."

"Yeah yeah…" Rogue breathed out before getting serious. "But just one word of advice," he paused to make sure all of them were listening (sans Penumbra, who was peering into the entrance of the downward staircase). "If you split up to cover more ground…" his lips twitched as he gestured to the other bat and echidna. "…make sure that they don't go alone."

Sonic snorted, and Silver had to cover his mouth to muffle his mirth.

Shadow was unamused. "Let's go," he commanded the others before dropping down into the stairwell, Penumbra warily trailing after him.

"Watch our backs!" Sonic mock saluted as he followed suit. Rogue and Silver copied the action. It was clear that they were growing on the hero, despite of what happened last night.

Rouge had to push Knuckles towards the latch to keep him from doing something he regretted.

Below ground on the stairs, Shadow stepped lightly as he went deeper, making sure to not make a single sound. Once he was halfway down, he glanced back to see Penumbra and Sonic behind him, the latter watching Rouge and Knuckles drop down. The azure speedster faced back forward and gave him a thumb's up.

At that signal, Shadow resumed his trek until he reached a knocked down door leading to the main structure. Someone was eager to leave. "I do door," his voice admitted from behind him, and Shadow wasn't surprised that his twin had did so. He was thrown off that the door hadn't been fixed.

He didn't think about it for long however; he promptly maneuvered over the useless piece of metal and was greeted with white walls. The Ultimate Lifeform frowned as the others entered after him. It was too quiet. Either no one was here, or the enemy knew _exactly_ what they were doing.

No member of the group spoke as they took in their surroundings, realizing that it would sound like they were yelling.

Until Penumbra gasped. "Sonic!"

Shadow withheld a wince as the hero's name bounced off the walls over and over again.

"What is it?" the blue hedgehog inquired lowly.

Nummy focused on him before shaking his head. His face twisted in thought until he pointed to his own nose. "Sonic."

Rouge understood. "He…He can smell him!"

Knuckles gritted his teeth together. "So he really did come here, just so _stupid._ "

Shadow didn't respond to that. "Find him."

Penumbra nodded before taking the lead, tracking a scent no one else could.

They went through hallway after hallway, eventually making Sonic quietly comment on how Eggman actually put thought into his lab, especially on how tucked away it was. Nummy was steadfast in his job, only pausing when they passed by three particular rooms. One was clean – implied that it was Nummy's – and the other two were _covered_ with a liquid only to be recognized as blood.

The first red room they hit was the most shocking. They stared in nothing short of horror, knowing that either Rogue or Silver was in there. While Knuckles and Rouge gaped, Shadow and Sonic turned their attention to Penumbra who refused to meet their eyes.

With the second, they barely focused on it. While Rouge whispered to Knuckles about how terrible it must've been, Sonic whispered to Shadow, "I kinda…understand why they did it. It doesn't make it right, but…" The striped hedgehog silently agreed. It was one thing to be told, it was another to _see._

Conversation ended as they continued on high alert. Nothing else interesting occurred until they turned a corner, and the whole hall had scorch marks on the walls, floor, and ceiling. Tiles were shattered and hanging. There was a door frame on the verge of falling apart a handful of yards away. Piles of debris were stacked outside of the room. It looked like a bomb had went off.

When Nummy led them towards the room, their muscles tensed. Was Boom actually in there?

They hung back as Penumbra peered inside. They stood until whimpers escaped trembling lips, then they threw caution to the wind and ran into the destroyed space.

It had to have been the main office. The massive computer on the wall was trashed and unusable. There were _bigger_ piles of debris everywhere, and unlike outside, there were worrying streaks of red that led to…

"No…" Sonic took a shaky step back, not believing what he was seeing. "N-No…!"

Knuckles had to turn around as Rouge covered her mouth, appalled.

The streaks of red led to Mephiles and Boom, laying side by side. The blue-striped hedgehog had horrible burns on his upper torso and face, skin completely gone. Red empty sockets stared up at the ruined ceiling.

Boom had less burns covering him, but there was so much more blood. There were huge gashes on his arms, puddles of crimson under them. A deep hole in one of his thighs showed stained bone, and his other leg was harshly broken. His eyes were tightly closed, tear stains leading down his face. Blood was splattered around his lips.

Shadow was numb as Penumbra went over to Mephiles, nudging him and looking confused to why he wasn't moving. However, his increasing distress communicated that he knew some of the weight of this.

Sonic swallowed the golf ball sized lump in his throat as he staggered over to his double, falling to his knees. _Why…Why…Chaos_ _ **WHY?**_ His world was becoming blurry as tears welled up, but before any of them actually fell, he saw Boom's chest move. Again. And again. And again.

It was _very_ weak, but he was still _breathing._

"He's alive!" Sonic yelled, not caring that they were in an enemy's base anymore. He was the center of attention now. "He's breathing! Shadow…!"

The Ultimate Lifeform rushed over before the hero had finished his sentence. He examined the speedster on the ground, and it was true, Boom was taking breath. But for how long?

Pulling on the Chaos emerald in his quills, Shadow made contact with Boom's chest. Internal injuries were a priority. He couldn't tell exactly what was wrong inside, but he could feel that it was possibly more than he could handle. Boom had to be lying here for a long time. It could be too late; Shadow still had to give it all he had. He needed to concentrate, and the others recognized that.

"I'll…go search for the Master Emerald, if it's even here." Knuckles suggested, and Rouge volunteered to go with him. One could only look at tragedy for so long.

It wasn't long before Sonic stood up, fingers in fists to hide their trembling. "I'll keep watch…if anyone's here, then they'd be coming right about now." The hero gave Mephiles one more glance as he exited, absolutely crushed.

Shadow felt Penumbra's eyes on him. He disregarded them as he worked, going as swiftly as possible while being extremely careful at the same time.

"Heal?"

The Ultimate Lifeform glanced up. Nummy was spreading his fingers out on Mephy's burns. Shadow's lungs constricted before he returned his stare to the speedster underneath him. "It won't work," he curtly said, "Go with Sonic." The less people around, the better.

Shadow heard him slink out of the room.

The minutes ticked by. He had to be making progress, but there was nothing to show for it. It constantly felt like Boom's life was slipping through his fingers. He was breathing however, and Shadow would keep pushing until his chest stopped rising. Then…Then…

The hedgehog was thrown from his morbid thoughts when harsh coughing filled the room. Boom was convulsing, blood spilling out of his open mouth, splattering the floor below. The only thing Shadow could do was position his hands over the boy's lungs as he watched with bated breath.

To his relief, Boom calmed down after a while. In his peripheral, Shadow noticed both Sonic and Penumbra peering inside, not daring to reenter.

The speedster's breathing was steadier. The Ultimate Lifeform kept in contact with Boom's chest, not wanting to miss anything. However, rubies were trained on the blue one's pained face.

"Sonic, can you hear me?" Honestly, Shadow didn't expect a response, so Boom's words were a shock to the system.

His voice was dry and rough; it most likely hurt for him to talk. "…Don't… I d-deserve this…"

 _What?_ Shadow couldn't formulate a reply as those dull emerald orbs revealed themselves. They were puffy and bloodshot. Those eyes painstakingly rotated until they found Shadow's form, then they fell onto Mephiles. Tears streamed not ten seconds later.

"The hell you do." Shadow managed to get his tongue to work. "What happened?" His only answer were hard sobs that wracked the speedster's whole body. The striped hedgehog spared Mephiles another glance before forgoing any conversation altogether.

He spent another five minutes on the other's core. Knuckles and Rouge had returned, them whispering with Sonic in the hall. Boom hadn't said anything else. His sobs morphed into whimpers, water leaking from his cloudy eyes. Shadow repositioned himself so that he could set the hedgehog's broken leg.

In one swift movement, the bones were realigned. Boom did nothing but subtly flinch at the pain.

The legs didn't take nearly as long as the speedster's chest. One of reasons could be that Shadow could visibly see his progress. The arms took even less time.

When Shadow finished, he slowly retracted his arms and stayed crouched. Boom hadn't taken his gaze off of Mephiles since the first time the speedster had woken up. "Are you going to answer me now?" Shadow attempted to glean some information, but he was met with silence.

The Ultimate Lifeform waited a moment before sighing. He reached out and gripped one of Boom's forearms. He brought the azure hedgie up with him when he stood; however, as soon as he let go, Boom slumped against him. He felt his shoulder growing damp.

Shadow kept his balance with the extra weight leaning on him. "If you don't stand straight up, I'm dropping you."

No reaction.

"Faker," he called, and Sonic hesitantly stepped back into the room. The hero was careful not to let his gaze drift. "Keep him up while I get Mephiles."

"Right." The azure Mobian came over and threw one of Boom's limp arms over his shoulder. He grunted when Shadow let go and his twin sagged against him. His heart sunk at the dead look in the other's eyes. "Knux said that the place is empty… We're the only ones here. No Master Emerald either." He barely managed a whisper. "What…happened here?"

"He isn't talking." Shadow bent down and gathered the corpse in his arms, regretting all of the times he had doubted the striped hedgie. Mournful emeralds and rubies met. "We need to go. Come in here," he told the rest of them in the hall.

It was clear that Rouge had cried at some point. Knuckles was on the verge, fighting to hold it back. Penumbra's tears were staining the floor.

"It had to be some kind of trap to…" Knuckles' namesakes clenched painfully. "…and to destroy any leads to them. There were no other clues, and that computer isn't going to tell us anything."

"And I doubt Penumbra would be able to track them down after the rain," Rouge wiped her irritated eyes. "I…I don't know what we do now, hon."

"A dead end…" Shadow nearly growled.

At that moment, Boom's knees buckled. His face would've slammed against the tiles if Sonic didn't have a tight hold on him. After a moment of thought, the hero moved his arms under his double and picked him all the way up. Boom was sobbing into Sonic's chest, not caring anymore.

Nummy cried with him.

It was time to leave.

"Chaos Control."

* * *

"I should apologize to Espio eventually. I _really_ don't want his Vector jumping me when we get back."

Silver barked out a laugh. His back was pressed up against the crumbling wall of the skyscraper, golds zoned in on the drifting clouds that were getting darker and darker. "Yeah, you probably should if you want to keep your life." He paused before speaking again, "I wonder where Blaze is? Charmy didn't have her with him – gah!" The psychic went cross-eyed when a fat water droplet landed on his nose. "Aw man, is it starting to rain?"

Rogue held his hand out, the open roof of the building letting the raindrops fall freely through. First it was light, but then the rain grew heavier. "Yeah…I think it is."

"Ugh, alright." Silver held his hands out and formed a force field above him and his friend. "There we go."

The bat glanced up. The sky now had a cyan tint to it. "How long can you do that for?"

"Until my arms get tired. This usually doesn't wear me out. Unless it's bullets that's hitting me or something."

"That's cool man."

"I know! Who needs umbrellas, am I right?"

Whatever Rogue was going to say was forgotten when a bright light shone in the corner of his eye. Both him and Silver turned around to see the rescue crew standing there beside the open hatch. The psychic's hands dropped when their owner recognized the Mobian in Shadow's arms. No words needed to be exchanged.

All tears were washed away by the downpour.

* * *

 **Next chapter…let's take a trip under the sea.**

 **And I'm just curious, who's your favorite character in this fic so far?**


	33. Chapter 33

**Disclaimer- Nah uh. I own not a thing.**

 **Chapter 33- Ground zero**

Espio stifled a yawn as he swirled the coffee cup in his hand. The chameleon brought the rim up to his lips and let the warmth flood into him. Footsteps echoed around in the empty metallic hallway as he leisurely walked, constantly moving to keep himself busy and not falling asleep on his feet.

He hadn't gotten a wink of rest last night. Between micromanaging construction, keeping a sharp eye on Eggman, and the excitement of his signature Master Emerald energy syphoning machine finally made, sleep wasn't an option.

Espio paused his sedated stride when he had come across a window, its massive pane letting blue rays of light filter through, shifting along the reflective floor. He sipped his hot drink once more as a single amber iris followed the multicolored fish swimming through the marine plants outside.

He was alone at the moment because he could afford to be. Metal Sonic was overseeing the work of the lesser robots, and the doctor had chosen a corner in the middle of the madness to sleep – after Espio had given him permission to, of course.

The ninja had to escape the controlled chaos. One could only handle so much of it. And also, Espio had to distance himself from the distracting noises so he could properly keep tabs on the prototype. In his other hand was a hasty put together tablet.

It was crude and rudimentary, but it served its purpose well. There was a moderately large screen that wasn't as clear as it could be, and the audio left a lot to be desired, but he could still do what he needed, so he was content. To the side of the monitor were a couple of buttons, each important in their own way.

Espio's lips pulled down at the edges when he continued to stroll. The robot's amnesia was an unexpected twist, and the chameleon figured that the mech's system wasn't as secure and tight as he had thought, letting the energy flow out of him like air out of a pierced tire. Apparently, he hadn't been completely waterproof, and the saltwater leak must have affected the circuits in the prototype's head.

Bokkun had been destined to just wander around lost until Espio or Metal found and reprogrammed him, not directing himself to the coordinates they had ordered him to seek out. It was good then that Silver and Rogue had done him an immense favor without them knowing it: leading the prototype right where he was supposed to be.

 _The trade-off had been beneficial in many ways,_ Espio thought as he finished off his coffee. Sure, there had been a major obstacle as well with the ever quiet Mephiles setting his other captives free; however, with the Aquatic base's communication cut off from Westopolis', Espio doubted that the search group would come back with anything other than corpses of that shadow hedgehog and his loud-mouthed partner. Also, there was no chance that anything from that mainframe computer was salvageable, so Espio was pretty much untraceable.

Killing two birds with one stone.

The purple reptile smirked as he wiped his lips with his arm. Losing Penumbra and Cream had been a minor setback, but at this point, there were no need for captives.

" _What's your favorite color, Bokkun?"_

" _I uh…I don't have one yet…"_

" _Do you think yellow is a pretty color?"_

"… _I guess, yeah!"_

" _Then here's a yellow flower for you!"_

Espio glanced down at the tablet when those voices came through. He saw Cream through the prototype's eyes, the bunny handing over a large bright flower and Bokkun taking it from her, them both giggling.

The ninja hummed to himself. Perhaps it was better that Bokkun couldn't recall his brief time here. The innocence radiating was astounding, and no unsuspecting bystander would think to question it.

" _Hey, you're Bokkun, right?"_

The image panned to reveal four more Mobians. The twin Amys and one of the foxes were there, Vanilla standing amiably behind them. They all took a seat, and one of the pinkettes added to her own question with a somewhat amused grin, _"Rogue's and Silver's pet robot?"_

" _I'm not a pet!"_ Bokkun screeched, _"Those two are idiots for thinking that I am!"_

That grin quickly melted away. _"Those two aren't idiots! They've saved lives you know."_

Bokkun began to mutter incomprehensively, and Espio could easily picture him pouting while crossing his arms. _"Them? Saving people?"_ The prototype eventually snorted. _"Yeah right."_

Espio stopped listening, knowing that continuously doing so was not going to benefit him in any way. The chameleon's thumb rubbed against a particular button. All he needed was the audio of Shadow's group returning, and then he'd give the tablet all of his undivided attention.

A large sliding door opened up when the chameleon approached it to reveal a room filled with many floating balls. When the door closed behind him, the ninja went over to the nearest metal sphere, seeing his reflection in the smooth surface. He clanked his mug against it, and the item moved a few inches away. Espio pursed his lips before roundhouse kicking the ball, it speeding over to the nearest wall and bouncing off of it, crashing into other balls.

These types of rooms would be great for training his new…recruits.

Espio resumed his mindless trek, getting the feel of this massive structure. Every once in a while, he would tune back into the tablet, listening to the words exchanged, only to be disappointed that the topic wasn't the one he was waiting for.

With the caffeine flowing through his veins, he felt awake and tolerant enough to head back towards the heart of the madness. The room was one of the ones on the lowest level, hallways sloping downwards to reach it.

When Espio crossed the threshold, the door uncovering beautiful progress, he couldn't keep the smug smile from growing on his face.

It was busy of course, robots filling the space, working on individual projects like a factory. At the far end, the Master Emerald was shining brightly in a cylinder container, many wires plugged into a machine under the large gem. They were waiting to be inserted into a second robot, the start of a more… _permanent_ chain of mechs.

Speaking of them…

Espio strolled over to the first robot of the PSCR – or the Particularly Specialized Character Replica – model, watching as a builder robot and Eggman finish off the details of the mech. Metal, who had most likely gotten the human up, watched over the process, making sure that the scientist didn't pull any sort of tricks.

The ninja didn't speak to Eggman, and the hateful man remained silent as he worked, obvious bags under his eyes. Espio stood beside Metal, whose artificial reds never wavered from the sight in front of him. The purple Mobian rose a slightly surprised brow at the accessory the PSCR model was currently gripping with frozen fingers.

"That wasn't part of the blueprints."

"I realize," Metal curtly responded, "The instructions were followed perfectly; however, I noticed that this model would lack distance attacks. She would have no upper hand in a ranged fight. So, I hastily added this so the enemy would be caught off guard."

 _This was a hasty decision alright._ Espio handed off his empty mug to a nearby lesser robot before sending a frown the metallic Sonic's way. "So…you believed that a baseball bat was the best choice?"

"Do not use that tone with me, chameleon. It will catch _them_ off guard, and do not judge until you see her in action. She will not disappoint."

"We'll see," Espio responded, dubious. Despite that questionable decision, the rest of the robot came out perfectly. The mech was short in stature – a theoretically harder target to hit – with ears reaching down her back that came together in a mock ponytail. The overhead lights bounced off her cream and brown coloring, the outside covering smooth and immaculate.

The robot looked as innocent as Bokkun, but Espio knew of the secrets hiding within her.

"What is the prototype doing?" Metal asked, finally tearing his eyes off of the artificial rabbit. The ninja kept his gaze sharp as he watched Eggman. "Did his amnesia ruin his mission?"

Espio simply passed over the tablet. He had to listen carefully, but he could hear that the time wasn't here yet. "No. I believed that it actually helped him. They don't suspect a thing."

"Hm." Metal handed it back. "I believe so as well. Though, I am glad that he is temporary. Why did you program him with such a personality?"

"He's a prototype for a reason. I wanted to see what I could do." The chameleon folded his arms across his chest, noticing the ghost of a frown on Eggman's lips. He couldn't blame the man. If he had no idea what was going on, he'd be little ticked off as well.

The doctor set down his tools, turning towards the duo. It was a while before he actually spoke, planning out his words so he wouldn't have electricity coursing through his muscles. "What do you mean by temporary?"

Espio smirked. "Bokkun's job is like Omega's, but planned out of course." At the appalled expression on the human's face, he tilted his head. "What's wrong, doctor? Don't you want this?"

Eggman gritted his teeth. "That's just barbaric-!"

"Quite the opposite. It'll be quick and moderately painless." Espio interrupted, touching a button on the tablet once more, refraining from pushing it in. "However, I don't doubt for a second that some will survive. I don't know how, but they will. Then, since you're so against going all out, I'll go slow with them. Have some fun with it."

The man opened his mouth to retort, but Metal didn't let a single word pass his lips. "Is she done, doctor?"

The doctor's gaze was aflame behind his glasses. "Yes. She is." The rotund human took a step back, and so did the builder bot on the other side of the bunny.

"Then to the Master emerald we go." The chameleon gestured for the lesser robot to carry the PSCR model over. Espio sauntered to his destination, humming a low tune as he did so. He was at ease – if not a bit tired – because he knew that Shadow's group were taking all of the hard hits. Sure, Omega was gone…at the moment. It'll take nothing to rebuild his loyal robot later; he had the red and black bot's hard drive.

Now by the ME, the unnamed mech placed the deactivated bunny on the ground. As soon as it did, Espio went to work attaching the proper wires in the proper places after putting the tablet down, repeating the process he had gone through with Omega way back when and with Bokkun, more carefully this time. Metal's and Eggman's eyes were on him as he completed the process; he ignored them. When he finished up, he stepped back to examine the final product before flipping a few switches on the machine under the Master Emerald.

Said jewel glowed a tad brighter, and Espio knew that the energy was being transferred. The ninja remained silent as he focused on a bar that was slowly filling up on a screen by the ME, showing how close the bunny was to being filled with the chaotic energy.

A high-pitched ding sounded from the machine, and a couple of switches were promptly turned off. However, unlike with Bokkun, Espio waited a moment, watching the screen and waiting for any sign of leakage. When there wasn't, he grinned victoriously.

Metal's monotonous voice then gained his focus. "Pay attention to the tablet, chameleon."

Espio turned toward him, his grin morphing into a confused frown until his amber orb drifted down to the device on the floor. It widened at the sight of the rescue team's return. The ninja quickly gripped the tablet and brought it up to his face.

Now he heard crying. _Lots_ of crying.

It was off-screen however. Bokkun was staring at the ones who looked miserable. Both Rogue's and Silver's eyes were red and puffy, the red echidna and female bat couldn't meet anyone else's gaze, Penumbra was sniffing at the ground, and Shadow was silent as he glared at nothing in particular.

Espio then focused on the two Sonics in the middle of the small group. One was devastated, predictable, but the other was so _wrecked_ that there was no emotion in those emerald orbs of his. They were dead, unseeingly staring at the grass at his feet. Espio had a very good guess at which Sonic was who, but he wasn't absolutely sure.

There was no Mephiles. No body, perhaps? Blown into too many pieces? Espio could see that happening.

" _Y…Y-You buried him?"_ The screen panned to a fox clinging to one of the pink hedgehogs from earlier.

Shadow nodded to the kit in response.

There was another round of crying, and there was a blur as a bee flew over to tightly hug Silver, sobbing into his shoulder. When Bokkun followed behind the insect, a scaled finger twitched toward the button on the side of the monitor. The prototype floated in between the male bat and psychic patting their shoulders.

Espio pressed the button.

" _H-Hey…I…I don't feel so good…"_

Both Rogue and Silver turned their heads in his direction, expressions devastated.

"… _What?"_ The bat lifted a hand and it went off-screen, presumably making contact with Bokkun's forehead. " _C-Can robots even get sick – Ah! Dammit!"_ Rogue held his burnt hand in shock. _"You're…way too hot!"_

Silver furrowed his brow, a pensive look on his face. _"But why is he-?"_

" _He's going to_ _ **explode**_ _!"_

The screen then went straight to static.

Espio pursed his lips, making an irritated sound in the back of his throat. Eggman's jaw was scraping the floor, disbelief emitting from him. "Were you not _happy_ with that, _reptile?_ "

He was on the floor the next second, his body convulsing.

The chameleon disregarded him altogether. "I'm not happy with that second of warning they had. They have four speed demons there."

"It was barely a second." Metal went over to the stiff bunny and pulled out every wire except for one. The one leading right to the robot's power. Her DNA microchip had been put in earlier in the process. "Also, the explosion should be so immense that they could not have escaped."

 _Should be_ , Espio thought before shaking it off. So what if only those four lived? All of their friends would be dead, and what kind of fighters would they be then? He smirked at those musings as Metal pressed and held a final button.

It took a moment, but eventually cream eyelids opened half-mast, red irises flashing on underneath them. The second thing that moved were her fingers, them tightening around the baseball bat in a death grip.

Espio bravely stepped closer to her, causing the robotic head to rise to create eye contact. The mecha-rabbit's mouth – made like Bokkun's – was a straight line, showing no emotion. The chameleon wasn't put off by this, wondering when the other's personality would begin to show. Bokkun's was immediate.

"Calm yourself." His voice was smooth, sure and inarguable. "No one here is going to hurt you."

Those red eyes blinked up at him before scanning the busy room, Metal Sonic, and eventually Eggman twitching on the ground. Her gaze lingered on him. "Did he hurt himself, then?" Her feminine tone had a small inflection in it, different from Metal's speech pattern. However, this wasn't what Espio expected, given who the DNA was extracted from. But then again, Metal was a prime example of this 'mistake', and he turned out fine. This PSCR model was already thinking for herself.

"Yes," Espio answered with a grin, "He did hurt himself. A shame really. He simply can't choose his words correctly."

"And who are you to punish him?"

The chameleon blinked at this question. Maybe these models would be a _little_ too intellectual. He then shook off his surprise, wanting to set the mech straight. "I'm one of the leaders here, the other one being Metal Sonic over there." Espio bobbed his head toward the not-Sonic, and red eyes zeroed in on the blue bot. Still no visible emotion. "But I alone am your creator. You wouldn't be here with us if it wasn't for me."

Muted shock filled her expression before it melted away, dispassionate once more. Her grip on the bat was limp. "Then who punished you?"

Espio felt the wrappings around his empty socket and inwardly scowled. "The enemy."

"Your enemy, or mine?"

Metal shifted where he stood. "She needs to be reprogrammed. Her current status is extremely unsatisfactory."

The chameleon stared at the bunny for a moment, and she stared back silently. The corners of his lips twitched. "Our enemy. They will destroy you on-sight, no question."

She cocked her head marginally. "I'll destroy them first then. I'll protect you, sir."

His smirk widened. "Thank you. I appreciate that a lot." Espio then peered over his shoulder, searching the area for a lesser robot that could easily be replaced. There was one standing idle in the middle of the room, not currently doing anything. Perfect. The chameleon slid to the right so he wasn't in front of her anymore. The ninja pointed at the oblivious mech. "Hit that one from where you're standing, Rabbit." _Let's see how your bat does, Metal._

"That's my name?" Her brow was marginally raised. "Original."

Espio resisted rolling his eyes, glancing at a recovering Eggman and an observing Metal Sonic. "It's better than naming you after another _particular_ person."

"Yes, that's true," she simply stated before grasping her baseball bat tighter. Then, with one swift arm swing, she threw the weapon so fast that the bat was a blur in the air, instantly ripping apart the target robot by tearing a whole right through its core. The bat embedded itself deep into the wall behind. However, she wasn't done. Rabbit's arm was outstretched, palm facing outward.

Before the generic robot hit the ground, the bat soared through it again as the weapon returned to its owner. The mech's head was torn clean off of its body.

Rabbit caught the bat and rested it against her shoulder. She glanced up at Espio, and the chameleon saw the ghost of a smirk on her metallic muzzle. It was so slight, the reptile almost believed that he was making it up. "When can I do that again?"

The purple Mobian threw Metal a shocked look, and in response, the Sonic look-a-like made a noise that Espio would interpret as a smug snort if it had come from an organic being. So the bat was a good idea, great even.

Espio refocused on the bunny, and a malicious glint appeared in his eye. "Soon enough."

* * *

He was numb.

It almost seemed contradictory, since he could see the grass below, smell the crisp morning air, taste how dry his mouth was, feel the soreness of his destroyed throat, and hear the sorrow as it spread around the clearing in the form of sobs. He was aware off all of this.

However, his mind was shrouded in a deep fog.

His body was keenly aware of its surroundings, but his mind refused to focus. It was unfeeling.

Numb.

The fuzziness began after he had run out of tears. It began after self-loathing was the only thing left to feel. The dense cloud of hate consumed him. It was all his fault. He was too hasty, too arrogant. He had fatal tunnel-vision. What made it worse was that Mephiles didn't want to go. Mephiles resisted, and yet, he dragged him along. To his death.

It was _all_ his fault.

It was all _his_ fault.

It was all his _fault_.

Those five words floated around in his brain, smothering any other thoughts. The hate became so dense and constant that the phrase repeated again and again and again. It eventually melted into static, white noise. Nothing was comprehensible. The abhorrence didn't disappear. It stuck around like a blood thirsty parasite, draining him of other emotions.

He hadn't spoken since he had told Stripes to leave him to die. He knew that the striped hedgehog wasn't going to, but it didn't hurt to try. He remained silent at the burial, the location somewhere his double led them. The Rabbit family's grave was there. Sonic had let him stand, and emerald orbs was glazed over as the body disappeared into the earth. He didn't feel sad. He couldn't.

It was all his fault.

It was all his fault.

He still hadn't uttered a word. Not when Sonic attempted to talk to him, the blue hero's voice spouting out nothing but gibberish, not when Stripes had teleported them all to the home, and certainly not when the unknowing Mobians had erupted into despair. He was silent.

Like how Mephiles forever had been, and forever would be.

It was all his fault.

It was all his-

"H-Hey…I…I don't feel so good…"

That was a new voice…childlike yet robotic. It drew enough curiosity to temporarily surface him from drowning.

"…What?" His unfocused gaze flickered over just in time to see a distraught Rogue touch a floating bot's forehead. "C-Can robots even get sick – Ah! Dammit!" The hand was snatched back, the cloth covering it burned away and skin swelling up. "You're…way too hot!"

…Way too…hot?

Blistering…heat…

It came together, and momentarily, the numbness was gone. Now, he felt _everything._ Sadness, rage, remorse, loneliness, shock, _panic._

Silver looked lost, not understanding that death was swiftly approaching. "But why is he-?"

"H-He…" His voice was hoarse and soft, and his throat painfully protested any use of it. He didn't listen. They were all about to die. His yell was filled with hysteria, no doubt gaining the attention of everyone around. That was the point. They were about to be blown apart. "He's going to _explode!_ "

Comprehension showed on the psychic's face just as a bright orange light impinged all of the eyes watching.

He expected a horrific repeat of earlier, this time feeling his skin and muscle burn away piece by piece, or better yet, his limbs ripping away from his body from the sheer force of the explosion.

However, none of that happened.

Instead, a blood-curdling scream pierced the air, coming from the psychic himself.

Emerald orbs reopened after automatically closing, squinting at the ball of immense light floating right where the small robot used to be. A thin layer of cyan was surrounding it, the covering pulsating, the contained energy slowly pushing outwards.

Silver was on his knees, both of his glowing hands held out. Blood was dripping out of the white one's nose, one eye squeezed shut in terrible pain. Silver's mouth was open, screaming, as he held the sudden eruption together. The psychic was clearly pushing himself past his limits, his powers tearing him apart from the inside out.

"G-Go! I can't…hold it much longer!" Silver's voice was no different from how his had been, broken and panicked.

"Get to Vanilla's, everyone!" Sonic ordered from behind him. He couldn't take his eyes off of the ball of death and destruction. "We need to move _now!_ "

Propellers whirled.

An engine roared.

Wings fluttered.

Sonic booms cracked.

Space was manipulated, multiple times.

He continued to stand as the sphere expanded, Silver continuously growing weaker and weaker. The white hedgehog was biting his lip so hard that red stained his chin. Silver's whole frame was violently shaking as he contained the lethal detonation. How was the white one going to live? As soon at the psychic stopped, he would be surrounded by fire, his life sizzling away.

He didn't know how many minutes had passed. He and Silver were alone now, his breath shallow and the other near passed out. He observed as the cyan membrane became nearly inexistent. There were chemical reactions repeatedly going off inside, flickers of yellow light beaconing within the orange.

Feet were planted to the ground. He knew that he need to go, but Silver was going to die.

Blown to pieces.

And he couldn't do anything _._

He should've noticed that robot earlier. He would've if he hadn't been so…so…

 _It is all your fault._

There was a hand on his shoulder, and before he could react to it, the setting had changed.

He was in another yard filled with Mobians next to a smaller house, belonging to the living pair of rabbits. He wasn't sure if everyone had reached this destination; he wasn't paying attention.

Stripes let go of his shoulder, gave him a fleeting glance, gazed in what could possibly be the direction Silver was in, and promptly vanished.

He followed the darker hedgehog's line of sight and blankly stared, knuckles straining as he clenched his fists.

There was no talk around him. One of the red echidna's showed up in his peripheral, throwing him mutely concerned looks. He ignored him. He ignored him with all he had. Because if he didn't, he would break down again.

 _It's all yours._

He refused to. Not in front of all of them.

Then, the sky brightened up when a giant fireball reached up and over the canopy of trees. It didn't matter the distance, the oranges and yellows were clear as day as they soared higher and higher, contrasting the blue all around it. The sound was near deafening, the roar loud and deep.

Stripes reappeared in front of him, an unconscious Silver lying limp over his shoulder. The black hedgie cupped his mouth with his free hands, voice barely loud enough to be heard over the rumbling mushroom cloud. "Brace yourself!" he shouted, "The shock wave's coming!"

It only left them a couple of seconds to crouch as low to the ground as they could, preparing themselves.

The wave was a hard slap to the face. Blue quills jerked to and fro and fingers dug into the ground to keep from flying backwards. His ears were plastered against his head to prevent any damage, for the change in pressure caused them to dangerously pop.

There were crashes from behind him, but they were small, so he assumed that the house was still standing with only a few broken pieces. The jeep and plane had to be intact as well.

Once the air was calm again, his tense muscles relaxed as he slumped fully against the ground, blades of grass crushed under his stomach. Emerald irises eventually focused back up, the loud colors now replaced by a large cloud of smoke slowly dissipating into the sky.

There was a moment of silence until the chatter started, the others getting back on their feet. He took a couple of steadying breaths before lifting himself off the ground, wiping away any dirt on him with unsteady hands.

"Is everyone alright?" Sonic asked, out of sight.

Affirmative mutterings answered him until a specific bee yelled out, "No! S-Silver's not okay!" He suspected it to be the bee the psychic was most familiar with, said kid buzzing over to Stripes and the knocked-out white hedgehog. "He's…He's really hurt!"

"He'll heal," Stripes responded as the others surrounded him and the unresponsive one, in turn surrounding the blue hedgehog as well. More glances were sent his way, and he gritted his teeth. The striped hedgehog sighed. "He just pushed himself to exhaustion."

One of the pink hedgehogs, Rosy, wiped her damp eyes. "He s-saved our lives!"

The other had a frown on her muzzle, smoothing her ruffled quills. "From…that robot that he and Rou – Rogue brought with them, right? That's what blew up?"

Sharp quills bristled as he snapped his jaded green eyes over to said bat, who looked distressed with all of the attention he was getting now. That _stupid_ bat had put them all in danger. Had almost killed _everyone_ in a ball of flames. Like...Like how he had…

" _No…Not again…no... Mephiles! Can you hear me? Please just…_ _ **please.**_ _"_

Tears welled up without his permission, his vision swimming.

Rogue's ears were folded downward, looking truly guilty. "I didn't…I didn't know! He seemed friendly!"

"FRIENDLY?" The green croc part of the agency barked. The reptile held up two fingers. "That's TWICE that you've messed up! First with Espio's eye, and now THIS!" Vector gestured to Sonic and Tails, both having subtle frowns on their faces. "Their house is probably blown to SMITHEREENS! Two strikes, and I personally don't think you deserve another chance!"

He completely agreed with the detective.

His fist connected with the bat's cheek the next second.

Rogue went sprawling, and he chased after him, not caring about the resulting gasps from others. The winged mammal landed on his back and the damp-eyed hedgehog straddled him. He didn't pull any punches to the face, the pained grunts coming from below doing nothing to deter him.

"What the _hell_ where you _thinking!?_ " he yelled, voice cracking and raspy. Tears were rolling by this point. "You could've fucking _killed_ them!" The bat's nose broke, and blood gushed. He didn't pause. "How could you let a robot get that effing _close?!_ " Bruises were forming. "You _deserve this!_ This and much _much more!_ "

His world was blurred now, and he felt wetness on his cheeks.

Words forced themselves out of his throat even when he was tackled away. He struggled as he was dragged by his arms, yelling his lungs out. "It's all your fucking fault! Their home, that psycho's condition, _it's all your fault!_ It's all _yours!_ "

His feet were flailing, trying to find purchase on the ground.

" _Stop_ it, Faker." The hands gripping his wrists painfully tightened as the voice hissed in his ear. Vanilla had taken Silver into their home, a shaken Cream following them inside. Stripes unfortunately was unburdened. "I'm pissed too, but don't blame it all on him. He couldn't have possibly known dammit."

Rogue didn't know.

He didn't know.

 _I didn't know._

That was the problem.

He didn't know what he was walking into. He didn't know what exactly he was going to be up against. He didn't know the _risks._ He just _didn't know._

And he went to that damned lab anyway.

The sob was too powerful to stop. He slouched forward, and Stripes reluctantly let him go. The ground was unforgiving, but he didn't care. His tears moistened the soil beneath him as he watched the other green crocodile help the bat up.

Rogue wobbled as he stood, wiping the blood away, careful to avoid touching his nose. "I guess that I uh…deserved that…"

"No you _didn't_ ," VC replied curtly, keeping the bat upright. He was eyeing the downed speedster warily.

Stripes sighed for the second time within fifteen minutes before throwing his former captive a warning look and going over to fix the bat's face.

Moist emeralds then snapped over to his twin, who was running a hand through his hanging quills. "Well Tails, guess that we're goin' house hunting after this is over?"

The kit was a bit more emotional, biting his lip. "Yeah…"

"After this is over?" Knuckles crossed his arms, a deep scowl set on his muzzle. "And when exactly is that? We don't know where that chameleon is! I _know_ that he's responsible for that explosion!"

Rouge was frowning over at her hurt double, then she called, "Do you remember where you got that thing, hon? The lab might be close by."

Rogue winced when his nose was set, and let out a deep breath once it started to get healed. "Don't really know. We…were kinda lost when we found him. It was on a beach."

"Wonderful," Knuckles fumed.

"Are you sure?" Rouge pushed. "Think as hard as you can."

"Sorta hard with my brain pounded to mush." He grinned, but it came out as a wince. "I want to find that bastard as much as you do. Killing my friends, torturing us, almost killing you guys…he has a serious death wish."

VC punched his own open palm. "And it's going to come true alright, sooner or later!"

"What about when you went to retrieve…" Espio trailed off, making eye contact with the broken down hedgehog before resuming. "The lab you went to. Did you find any evidence pointing to where my double and Eggman could be?"

Sonic shook his head. "There wasn't, Es. The place was bare besides Boom and Mephy…" He swallowed audibly. "And well, the computer that looked like it could have some answers was…blown up…"

"S-So, we're a-at a…d-dead end?" TT questioned, looking like he already had the answer. His namesakes were wrapping around his trembling body.

No one wanted to respond to that.

But Boom knew what they all were thinking in their heads.

They were stuck.

 _It's all my fault._

The static returned with a vengeance.

All conversation faded away…

…and so did he.

* * *

 **Boom's not dead guys lol, just a little (lot) out of it. The poor guy. He has to learn from his mistakes though.**

 **And yeah, I know that this chappie is a little 'shorter' compared to the rest and that's because idk… This one is mostly just a set-up. You got to see what evil Espio's up to and how Boom's faring, with some actual explosions mixed in ;)**

 **Next chapter…the search is on!**

 **Happy Holidays everyone!**


	34. Chapter 34

**Disclaimer- I own zero, zilch, nada.**

 **Chapter 34- Down the rabbit hole**

"…Wow. I knew that it was gonna be bad, but I thought _something_ would be left standing…"

Shadow silently agreed with the frowning speedster beside him. Returning to the site of the explosion, the Ultimate Lifeform expected for some rubble to be left behind along with the home's sturdy foundations. However, that wasn't the case.

There was no sign that a house ever resided there. An immense crater dented the ground, the topsoil having been blown away. The grass along the outside rim was charred and blackened. There wasn't anything else. No falling debris, no remains of that robot, nothing.

The striped hedgehog raised his chin so he could focus on the lingering smoke in the air. No wind blew, like the earth itself wanted them to realize exactly how _close_ to death they all were.

When Shadow had first seen the robot floating behind the newly arrived Silver and Rogue, he mentally questioned its appearance in the back of his brain, but the urgency of rescuing Boom and Mephiles had been first priority. He had left the others _alone_ with that ticking time-bomb. Fortunately, the mech didn't go off while his group was at Westopolis. Without Silver, none of them would have survived.

His fists clenched. This was the work of the evil Espio, that was clear as day. The doctor was a man who wanted to observe the downfall of anything that got in his way. Eggman would want that satisfaction. Espio on the other hand was out for nothing but revenge, at least at the moment. He wouldn't oppose the idea of a cheap kill.

And that made him much more dangerous.

That plan had already taken one of his good allies, and had severely scarred another…

Mephiles' death was a hard slap to the face. Every single one of them were targeted. They weren't dealing with just a crazed scientist anymore; a homicidal genius had been added to the mix and that chameleon had done a _great_ job with making himself known.

Hearing footsteps, Shadow tore his ruby orbs away from the grey wisps above to watch Sonic approach the crater, sinking down into it. The hero's feet slid against the loose dirt as he headed to where his home had formerly sat. Sonic stood still for a moment before squatting down and palming some soil, letting it slip through his fingers.

Along with nearly losing their lives, Sonic and Tails having their home and belongings decimated had to be a hard hit as well. They had spent enough time here to mourn the house's existence.

Unlike the blue one's twin…

However, Shadow knew that he couldn't possibly compare Sonic and Boom at this point. The memory of the latter launching himself at Rogue with tears streaming down his cheeks made the Ultimate Lifeform inwardly sigh. Boom had lost another person of his past. Another person he had been close to, whether the speedster knew it himself or not.

Boom was mentally scarred, more than he already had been. Shadow couldn't imagine the self-torment the other had to be putting himself through. The striped hedgehog had no doubt that Boom was blaming himself for Mephiles' death. He most likely had told Mephiles to take him to the Westopolis base. Shadow couldn't see the shadow hedgie suggesting that the duo go back.

The semi-hero's unpredictability had increased. He had gone from an emotionally blank state to a person filled with rage with the flip of a switch. Shadow didn't know what to do. The best option to at least _push_ Boom in the direction of stability was to take out the evil Espio. But they couldn't do that. The chameleon was hiding away in a place they couldn't trace. Shadow had come with Sonic to see if he could find any robot remains; he'd come for no reason. They were nothing but sitting ducks here.

They all needed to leave so they could plan without the enemy knowing where they were.

He would voice his concerns when they rejoined with the group at Vanilla's home.

But before then, he wandered the perimeter where the trees began. He knew that there wasn't going to be any remains out there. Shadow let Sonic be alone with his thoughts for a handful of minutes.

"I guess that we came back here for nothing, huh?" The Ultimate Lifeform paused in his smooth stride to see Sonic walking back over to him. The azure Mobian scratched his nose when he stopped in front of Shadow. "There's nothing for me to save, and you didn't find any pieces, did you?"

"No." They wouldn't be able to utilize Penumbra's sense of smell. All they could hope for now was Silver waking up and somehow remembering where they had found the robot. But even if that did happen, there was no guarantee that they would find the base…

Shadow shook away those thoughts. Negativity would do no good here. "No signs of anything."

Sonic put his hands on his hips, chewing the inside of his cheek. "Chaos… What do we do now? Normally, I would've been found Eggy, destroying all of his stuff. I would even have a quip about his defeat at the ready when I won! But…" The hero took a heavy breath, his gaze steely. "We gotta find them Shadow."

"We don't have any leads," he stated the obvious.

"Then we'll search for some! There has to be _something!_ Silver's not up yet, and we can-"

"Aquatic base."

Sonic's jaw snapped closed when a new and unfamiliar feminine voice interrupted him. Shadow's guard was immediately put up as they both jerked their heads in the direction those words came from, looking up towards the sky.

The Ultimate Lifeform's muscles tensed when he zeroed in on a robot hovering near silently in the air. It seemed like an exact replica of Cream…the Cream that was dead. She even had a metallic bat leaning against her shoulder and her ears in a ponytail. The only thing that was different were those half-lidded red opticals staring between him and Sonic.

"Who are you?" the hero asked, instinctively sliding into a fighting stance. "And what do you want?" he ordered. Shadow could tell that he was on edge, but then again, who wouldn't be after all they have been through?

The Ultimate Lifeform's quills bristled as he keenly watched the mech, not uttering a word.

The cream-colored robot gave Sonic her full attention. "I'm Rabbit, the first model of the PSCR series. I was sent here by Master Espio-" A growl tore through Shadow's throat at that name. "-to search for survivors. I found you, so I'm supposed to give you a lead, a very concrete one at that. He's at Aquatic base."

Neither Shadow nor Sonic responded verbally at first.

Rabbit filled the silence after a couple of seconds. A brow had risen marginally. "Don't know what or where it is? It's a vast underwater structure. It's not hard to find now that you know what you're looking for-"

"We know where it is!" Shadow barked, baring his teeth. "This is a damned trick, isn't it? You're hoping that we walk into our _deaths._ "

Rabbit cocked her head a bit. "I'm not surprised that you don't believe me, but I wouldn't lie about it. Whether or not you choose to believe _that_ is up to you. You asked for leads, and I gave one to you."

Sonic shifted his weight, eyes narrowed. He then grinned, it void of mirth. "Thanks for that, but do you really think that we're gonna head out there?"

She twirled her bat before resting it on her shoulder again. "It'd be stupid of you not to."

The Ultimate Lifeform scowled, not liking this turn of events. Why the hell would the evil Espio want them to know where he was? It had to be a trap. There was no other reasoning for this.

"I think…" The grin morphed into a smirk. "…that it was stupid of you to come out here. Didn't that chameleon tell ya that every robot that comes my way gets turned into scrap metal?"

Rabbit's artificial red orbs glinted, and her grip on her weapon tightened. Shadow knew that violence was going to break out soon enough. "No, he didn't." She began to lower herself to the ground, one corner of her mouth twitching upwards. "So I take it that you aren't going to let me leave freely?"

Shadow didn't take his eyes off her for a second. He had to be ready to dodge any attacks; he had _no_ idea what this mecha-bunny could do. "Hell no. You probably don't know _half_ of what your _master_ has done, and destroying one of his _toys_ will be the first step to _killing_ him."

Sonic's gaze flickered over to him. He ignored it.

Rabbit grounded herself inside of the crater. She flipped her bat and caught it again. "It's too bad that you won't ever take that first step." Then something… _changed_ inside of her. Shadow could sense it. Something was spreading throughout her whole system, and the Ultimate Lifeform's eyes widened as he identified it. It was chaotic energy flowing through her…belonging to the _Master Emerald._

"Shit!" He cursed aloud. His mind went back to when he first met the other Omega in his dreamworld before fast-forwarding to his and Espio's showdown. The bunny had that same energy in her. This was _bad_.

Sonic looked like he had caught on, wariness set in his features. "That's…That's the ME's energy!"

"Great, you've figured it out," Rabbit drawled, holding up her metal weapon. "Batter up." She stared at Sonic before swiftly swinging her hand. The slight twist of the wrist was the only warning Shadow got before the baseball bat was hurled his way instead of the azure hero's.

The Ultimate Lifeform quickstepped to the side a _millisecond_ before the weapon would've smashed into his head. He felt the whip of rushing wind the bat caused as it flew by, him watching in shock as it soared into the foliage behind them, a couple of trees toppling on contact. If he had gotten hit by that, he would've been dead. No doubt.

There was a soft hum, and Shadow whirled back around to see Rabbit staring at him. She hadn't moved from her position. "You weren't supposed to dodge that," she said, and Shadow could almost visualize the gears turning in her head, "You're light on your feet, aren't you?"

"Heck yeah he is," Sonic responded, regaining attention on himself. He was bouncing on his toes, one foot turning in the direction of the thrown bat. "And I'm lighter! You'll have a hard time hitting us, but us hitting you'll be no problem! And you know what the icing on the cake is? Taking you apart with your own weapon!" Sonic then rushed off after giving a sloppy salute.

Shadow's eyes were slits as he took in Rabbit's seemingly unguarded form, her gazing dispassionately back at him. He didn't dare judge the book by its cover here, _especially_ after what just happened. But, they couldn't stand here all day. He wanted to get back to the others because there was the worry that this robot possibly hadn't come here alone.

That thought made his teeth clench. They had to dismember her quickly, but she had the energy protecting her. They just had to give it their all then, no mistakes.

A glower marred his features before letting chaotic energy gather in his palm. Yellow lightning crackled in his hand before he activated his skates, pushing off the charred grass and zooming toward his target. He was more than ready to divert his current path – the robot _still_ hadn't moved – if the other decided to pull a trick.

When he was only a couple of yards away, Shadow let the Chaos Spear loose. Then, taking precautionary measures, as soon as the energy left his palm, he pulled on the Master Emerald's energy inside his opponent rather than from the half-powered cyan Chaos emerald tucked in his quills. The former was more reliable at the moment. Shadow thought the two magic words before teleporting in the air to the left of Rabbit's head.

The Ultimate Lifeform twisted his body, aiming a powerful kick at the other's metallic skull, but his attack never made contact. The contact he wanted, anyway.

Shadow's breath hitched when something cold and hard wrapped around his ankle. His brain barely managed to register that one of Rabbit's ears had _extended_ and trapped his lower leg with a painfully tight grip. The striped hedgehog flinched at the uncomfortable feeling before he began to dangle. He scowled, about to utilize the M.E.'s energy again, but all of his muscles instantly contracted when unrestrained electricity swamped his system.

An agonized yell escaped his mouth, feeling his heart being tortured. His mind was also being assaulted. He could barely keep his eyes open; Chaos Controlling in this state was damn near _impossible_.

Rabbit was looking at him out of the corner of her eye, the ghost of a grin on her face. Static sparks were emitting from her left ear, entering and devastating the inside of Shadow's body. "Your electricity's not comparable to mine. It had smarted…a bit."

Shadow didn't understand. Why had his spear been so _weak?_ Was it because it didn't have the help of a fully powered Chaos emerald? But the Master Emerald's energy was nearby! So why? Did the bot… _resist_ his attack?

The striped hedgehog couldn't hold onto that train of thought for long, for she had amped the voltage up a notch. His yells turned into blood-curdling screams. He couldn't control them.

"This isn't enough to kill you, but you should lose consciousness in a few seconds."

True to her words, it wasn't long before Shadow's form went limp.

When Sonic heard his friend's frantic screams, he had just managed to pry the baseball bat from the trunk of a fallen tree it had wedged into. The hero stumbled a bit when he yanked it out, lowly whistling. "Note to self: never play ball with her if offered."

The hero's body froze at Shadow's voice before his feet decided to move. His heart was pounding against his ribcage as he cradled the weapon. He couldn't remember the last time he'd heard Shadow sound like that. What was Rabbit _doing_ to him?!

Sonic broke through the tree-line in record time only to see the striped one hanging out-cold in the air, one of the bunny's ears holding him by the ankle. His friend's arms and legs were violently twitching, drool dripping out of his mouth.

The hero's knuckles went white, his grasp on the bat borderline painful. Anger and worry coursed through his veins, his quills bristling at the horrible sight. "What did you _do?!_ " he shouted, voice containing a building rage.

"Shock treatment," she answered calmly, and Sonic never wanted to completely demolish a robot so bad in his life. "Oh, thank you for retrieving my bat. I appreciate it." She then held her hand out.

The hero was airborne before he realized what was going on. He was flying toward the robot with a speed he thought only he could reach with his _own_ feet. It was…because of the bat! She was using something to make it automatically return to her, dragging Sonic along as well.

A plan quickly formed in the speedster's head. He would use this unexpected velocity to his advantage. If he let go of the tool, then he could curl into a ball and send the other sprawling, hoping putting a sizable dent in her exterior.

Going with that action plan, he released the bat and immediately curled into himself, spinning like an out-of-control sawblade. Then, time seemed to slow down for him. As he spun, the bat picked up speed, getting away from him. He still felt that he was going to get in a devastating hit…until the weapon made it back into the bunny's hands. When she had positioned herself like a batter itching to knock a ball out of the park, Sonic realized that he had made a grave mistake.

And it was too late to do anything.

If he veered, he'd still be in her range. But he tried anyway, bracing himself.

Rabbit didn't hesitate when she swung, hitting her target perfectly. A sickening crack echoed throughout the clearing before the blue ball shot back the way he came, nothing but a blur as he sliced through trees and bushes. However, Sonic couldn't keep himself curled any longer, his broken thigh preventing him from doing so.

He flipped uncontrollably, hitting branches and trunks that sliced his skin and created deep bruises. The hero eventually hit the ground, but he still didn't stop. The impact tore a yell from his throat, his shoulder brutally dislocating with a gruesome snap. Sonic tumbled head over heels, a cloud of dirt following him as his face rammed into the soil, roots, and rocks over and over again.

When he lost enough forward momentum, his body stopped spinning. Instead, Sonic's abused muzzle scraped against the ground until his speed decreased enough to slide to a complete halt.

Everywhere hurt. Sonic squeezed his eyes shut as he lightly panted, feeling blood leaking out of the multitude of cuts he'd received. He attempted to get up by using his intact arm, but with his other arm and leg useless, he barely had gotten to his knees before flopping back down to the grassy floor.

The azure hedgehog groaned, swallowing a pitiful whimper. How…how was he going to be a hero if he couldn't move? How was he going to help Shadow? How was he going to stop that robot from finding everyone else?

Enduring the endless pain, Sonic stiffly crawled over to a sturdy tree trunk and leaned heavily against it. The hedgehog hissed as he carefully stood, one weakened knee shaking with all the weight put on it. He didn't dare use his other leg. He didn't want to make his break worse.

Chaos… he never thought that the fight would be like this. She landed _one_ hit on him, and he could barely move.

His mind was a whirlwind, thinking on what to do now. He had three options. One, he could attempt to run all the way back to the others and warn them, leaving Shadow in that bot's hold. Two, he could try to go back and fight, but he knew that that wouldn't end well at all. Three, he could just…hide. Hope that she didn't find him or the others. Again, leaving Shadow alone with her…

None of those sounded appealing.

However, he didn't get a chance to choose.

"You're very resilient. I was sure that my home run would've done more damage." Sonic's heart skipped a beat before he slowly peered over his shoulder. Rabbit was there, floating with Shadow by her side. "Not fatal damage of course, Master didn't send me to kill, but enough to keep you from standing."

"What do you _w-want_ with us?" Sonic's growl sounded more like a whine.

"I told you what I came here to do." Rabbit rotated the bat resting on her shoulder, and Sonic's gaze snapped to the movement. "I came here to tell you where the base was. I didn't plan on attacking, but I was pushed to. You two brought this on yourselves."

The azure hero gritted his teeth. "Then why are you still talkin' to me? You…" He swallowed thickly, hating his next words. "You won! You delivered the message, and you beat us, so why are you still here?"

"Because I want to ask a question."

Before his lips could open to vocalize a very confused 'What?', Rabbit's other ear began to elongate. Sonic gasped, turning to run away from the approaching appendage. His leg didn't allow him to take a single step. The hedgehog crumpled to the ground with a yelp, shocks of pain emitting from his thigh.

Sonic struggled to get up again. He made little progress before the ear slithered around his battered body, roughly squeezing his torso and keeping his arms bound. The hero bit his bottom lip to keep from shouting as he was lifted off the ground, held right in front of the bunny's face.

The hero's breaths were shallow and ragged as she spoke. "If you don't lie, I won't shock you. Are you and him," her red eyes flickered over at Shadow before locking onto pained emeralds once more. "the only survivors of the blast?"

Sonic only hesitated for a split second before answering, "Yes! We're the only ones that got away." He folded his ears against his head and – feeling bad doing it – thought about the friend he had really lost. Eventually, his eyes moistened up. "The others weren't fast enough…"

Rabbit remained silent for a moment. Then she uttered, "You're lying."

"N-No! I'm not! We-!"

He interrupted himself with a yell when volts of electricity wrecked his entire system.

The pain became too much, and his body went limp.

* * *

Rogue frowned as he gazed across the yard at the group of Mobians conversing there. It consisted of the Chaotix along with Knuckles and Rouge. Occasionally, either Vector, Knuckles, or Rouge would glance over to him. The first two's expressions were nowhere near friendly, and the latter's was somewhat frustrated, like she was trying and failing in convincing the echidna and crocodile of something.

The male bat sighed as he propped up a knee, leaning back against the dainty home. "You guys don't hate me, right?"

VC, who was lounging beside him, snorted as he eyed the other group as well. "Hell no! The stuff you did wasn't your fault." The croc nudged him with his shoulder. "I mean seriously, if I had been in your shoes, I would've attacked Espio too and kept that robot as a pet!"

Rogue chuckled. "Yeah…"

"I don't hate you." Red, on the other side of the bat, yawned before continuing. "Sure, I wouldn't have trusted a robot because of everything we've been through-" Rogue shouldn't have either; he didn't know what the _hell_ he and Silver had been thinking. "-but you couldn't have known that he was going to blow up. It's just another thing to hate the other Espio for, not you."

"Thanks." Rogue patted them both on their shoulders. "But I only wish your doubles would think the same…"

Red waved him off. "Just ignore them. Works for me."

VC rolled his eyes. "Is it _really_ working? That probably just makes him angrier." Red shrugged. The croc returned his gaze to Rogue. "Have you apologized to Espio yet?"

The bat let out a puff of air. "Not yet… Didn't really get a chance to after…everything that's happened." His voice quieted near the end, and his neighbors knew that he wasn't just talking about the explosion and Silver.

"He didn't deserve it…" the echidna muttered, lips twitching downwards.

"Mephy did nothing but help," VC quietly sighed, flicking a blade of grass. "He helped us get that serum out of our system, he helped with the invasion, and he helped rescue this world's Cream and Penumbra." The croc crushed it under his palm, fingers digging in the dirt. "I _swear_ when I get my hands on him…"

"Your hands? Oh hell no bro." Rogue linked his fingers behind his head, gazing up at the slowly drifting clouds. "When _I_ get to him, I'm going to make the bastard's death nice and _slow_. I want to hear him scream."

No one talked for a moment, VC and Red giving him thoughtful stares. "What did he do to ya in the lab?" the croc finally asked.

Rogue rose a brow, glancing between his two friends. "What? You don't know? Shads didn't tell you?" They shook their heads, and the bat stated bluntly, "Penumbra attacked us in there. Over and over again."

Red blinked in shock. "Penumbra? You were in that condition because of _him_?"

"Yeah."

"Holy crap man…" VC rested his palm on his forehead, flabbergasted. "Espio seriously had him leashed…"

The echidna eyed the bat, who was frowning now. "That couldn't have been pleasant."

"The complete opposite dude… It was terrible."

"Penumbra must've really liked Cream and well, those shocks Shadow said he got had to be extremely painful," Red continued. He couldn't fathom the amount of torture Rogue and Silver had gone through.

"…Yeah," the bat repeated before standing up. "I'll be back in a sec."

Red gave him a curt wave while VC gave him an odd look, but the croc didn't question it. "Alright man."

The bat mock saluted them as he made his way toward the front door of the house, not paying attention to the group in the distance anymore. He opened it after taking a calming breath. The rest of the Mobians were situated in the living room.

Silver was sleeping on the couch, and Vanilla was sitting in the only chair available. The others were scattered about on the floor, all of them waiting for the psychic to wake up. Most of them were playing an easy card game to pass the time until either Silver opened his eyes or Sonic and Shadow came back with some kind of remains.

However, no one seemed to be focused. CB kept glancing back at Silver, Rosy continuously wiped her damp eyes, TT was busy comforting her and keeping his own tears at bay, and Cream had her head on Amy's shoulder. The only two who seemed somewhat into the game were Amy and Omega – the bat almost trembled at the sight of him – but they couldn't continue if the others didn't play.

Penumbra, the one he was looking for, was curled up behind Cream, the furthest away from the recovering Silver. Rogue pursed his lips at that.

Rosy was the first to notice him. "Hey Rogue…" she addressed, and all eyes were suddenly on him. She sniffed. "Is Tails back yet with them?" The kit had hopped in his plane to go check on the two hedgehogs, since they had been gone for a while.

"Not yet," he replied before peering over at Silver. "Any signs of wakin' up?"

"No!" CB whined, eyes glistening. "He's been in the same position ever since Vanilla and Cream brought him in!"

Rogue didn't respond, looking at the psychic that had saved all of their lives. Shadow had said that he was just exhausted. Hopefully he'd wake up soon.

"Do you need anything?" Amy asked softly before holding up her cards. "Do you want to join?"

The bat shook his head. "Thanks, but no thanks. I actually came here to get Penumbra."

Said striped hedgehog, who had been warily staring at him ever since Rosy addressed the bat, perked up a bit at his name, but didn't move.

"Mr. Penumbra?" Cream looked between the red-striped hedgie and Rogue. "Why?"

He somehow managed to crack a smile. "I just wanna talk to him." Rogue focused on the dark hedgehog. "So how 'bout it?" Penumbra didn't move a muscle, eyes subtly narrowing. Rogue tried again. "Please dude?" When the hedgie eventually got up on his feet, the bat inwardly sighed.

He did a 'follow me' gesture with his hand before exiting the house. Rogue strolled towards the back of the home, wanting their conversation to be private. The bat paused in his stride when he entered the backyard, seeing it already occupied.

Boom was sitting in the grass with his knees pulled up to his chest, his head buried in his arms. A blue-furred ear had twitched at his arrival, and emerald irises peeked out to see who it was. Rogue stayed still, not wanting to become a target for a second time. Boom could hit _hard._

However, instead of launching himself at the bat, the speedster simply looked away, wobbly stood up, and jumped up onto the roof of the house, leaving Rogue alone.

Hearing footsteps beside him, teal orbs glanced over to see Penumbra peering up at the roof. He was only distracted for a bit before Nummy refocused, ducking his head down some. He was cautious. "Why talk?" he asked.

Rogue fully faced him, expression softening. "Look man, okay… You did a very bad thing to me and Silver, you know that, right?" He lost eye contact with the other, Nummy looking at the ground and nodding.

"Sorry," Penumbra breathed out before slightly leaning away. "Please no hurt…"

The bat scratched his arm. "Yeah I know you're sorry, and that you didn't…" Rouge inwardly winced at the mental images of the hedgehog attacking him, tearing him, making him bleed. He pushed those pictures away. If he was constantly reminded, he wouldn't be able to do this. "…want to do it. I know that it wasn't completely your fault."

Penumbra cocked his head at him, maroons meeting teals again.

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for doin' that to you. I'm apologizing for both me and Silv; I'm sure he feels the same way." Nummy's eyes had widened, but his lips remained closed. Rogue resumed, "Us doing that made us no better than the evil Espio. No one should get hurt like that." _No more people should die. We all have to work together to get the real prize._ "Forgive us?"

"…Forgive?" That word sounded foreign on Nummy's tongue.

Rogue hummed to himself before mending his phrasing. "Can we be friends again?"

Penumbra stared at him, his internal conflict clear on his face. The hedgehog shrugged. "You hurt me. If you no do again…" A smile grew on his muzzle. Rogue didn't care that it was a bit shaky; it was still a _smile._ "We can be friends."

Relieved, the bat held up a fist. "That's awesome!" His high fell back down however when Nummy flinched away from his hand. There was progress to be made, that's for sure. "I'm not gonna hit you, dude! Do this." Rogue relaxed his fingers before clenching them again. Penumbra, after a moment, copied the action. "Now…" the bat held his fist out once more. "Fist bump!"

After a few seconds of Penumbra looking at their hands, he touched their knuckles together, staring at Rogue and waiting for confirmation that he had done it right.

"Good job bro!" Rogue beamed, and Nummy genuinely did too. Their sadness was temporarily gone.

"Alright now," the bat put his hands on the other's shoulders, "Come with me so I can say sorry to Espio and have some back-up just in case this place's Knuckles attacks me or something." When Penumbra took too long to comprehend what he was saying, he patted the hedgehog once before leading the way. "Just follow me man!"

"Okay." That did the trick, Penumbra curiously trailing after him.

Rogue sauntered back to the front of the house, heading for the group mentioned earlier. He raised a hand in greeting as he got closer. "Yo dudes!" He then sent Rouge a grin. "And Roo."

"Hello to you too hon." She smirked, folding her arms across her chest.

Charmy waved back at him, and Espio nodded in response, eying the striped hedgehog as he approached as well. Knuckles and Vector however weren't so friendly. Rogue almost faltered in his step at the glares he received.

Nummy, who was beside him now, frowned. "Why mean?" he asked them two after throwing the chameleon a thoughtful glance. Ruby eyes drifted from the croc to the echidna, lingering on the latter and narrowing. "Stop."

Rogue nodded. "What he said."

"You _both_ know exactly why," Knuckles grumbled, ire radiating from him. Rouge rolled her eyes and tisked.

"What do you want?" Vector questioned, tone sharp.

Rogue understood why they would be upset about the robot thing – they had almost _died_ for Chaos' sake – but they haven't forgiven him about Espio yet? The chameleon looked like he was over it, so why couldn't they be?

"Well, I'm here to try to fix one of the wrongs I've made, and P-man here is my bodyguard." The bat took half a step behind Penumbra when those orbs hardened. He then turned to an exasperated chameleon. "Hey Espio…" A single amber eye focused on him, and guilt twisted his gut. "I'm really s-"

"I don't blame you," the reptile cut him off, "There's no need to apologize." _Really?_ Rogue thought, _That was easier than expected._

"Yes there is! _I_ need to hear it!" Vector huffed.

 _Nevermind._ Rogue started again, hoping that the irritation in his tone wasn't perceivable. This croc needed to chill. "I'm really sorry about your friend's eye. I know that I can't make it better, but-" The rest of his words were drowned out by the sound of propellers and a plane engine.

Everyone outside turned their attentions to the approaching Tornado with Tails in the pilot seat. Shadow and Sonic were nowhere to be found.

When the kit touched down, the Mobians inside had come scurrying out, hoping too that the two speedsters had found _something_ that would lead them to the mysterious base.

However, all thought about that lab disappeared once they saw how distraught the two-tailed fox was.

"They're gone!" Tails yelled after parking his plane. He hopped out of the cockpit, breathing heavily with his eyes wide and frantic. "They're _gone!_ "

"Whoa Tails! Calm down!" Knuckles had lost his glare when he jogged over to the kit. "What do you mean that they're gone?"

"They…They-!" Tails swallowed thickly, slowing down his words and thinking them through. "They aren't where the house used to be! I think they might've been taken!"

Amy gasped. "Taken?! No! They're _Sonic_ and _Shadow_! They won't ever let themselves be taken!"

"What makes you think that?" Rouge inquired, a hand on her hip.

"There were signs of struggle!" Tails' namesakes were twitching erratically. "Trees were knocked down, and…and I saw blood…" his last words was a trembling whisper.

"Can't we ever catch a break…?" Red clenched his fists.

Tears welled up in Cream's eyes. "They took Mr. Shadow and Mr. Sonic like they took me and Mr. Penumbra!"

"And they're going to trap them like they did Silver and me," Rogue added, distress levels skyrocketing. _If they don't kill them_. He didn't dare say that out loud.

But it seemed like he didn't have to. "It's…It's happening again!" Rosy's voice was high-pitched and shaking. "They're separating them from us! They're going to _kill_ them!"

"Tails," Knuckles nearly barked, damp sapphire orbs focusing on him, "Were there _any_ hints to where they could be?"

The kit nodded, bringing himself back from the edge of panic. "Aquatic base was written in the loose dirt there…"

"Dammit!" Knuckles loudly cursed.

"Aquatic base?" Rouge's eyes widened. "Isn't that-?"

"Yes," the echidna snapped.

"…What's Aquatic base?" CB meekly questioned.

"It's a vast underwater lab that Eggman had taken over a while ago." Tails began to pace. "He had abandoned it, but he went back there for some reason. I don't know why-"

"Maybe he didn't." Espio closed his eye in thought. "Forgive my interruption, but didn't it ever occur to you that this could be a trap? That they possibly couldn't even be there?" He reopened his yellow orb. "I know this is a sensitive subject, but we could easily end up like-"

"That doesn't matter." The chameleon cut his sentence short when a quiet yet commanding voice rose up from the crowd. Boom was standing at the edge of the loose circle formed. His expression closed off and blank. "I don't care if it's a trap or not. It's a lead, and we're going to follow it."

"But-" Vector tried to argue; however, Boom's emotionless mask cracked and slid right off. If looks could kill, the croc would have been nothing but bones.

"No. One. Else. Is. Going. To. Fucking. Die. _Understand?_ " The azure speedster snarled at the reptile, and the crocodile wisely closed his jaw. Boom's emerald orbs were aflame, unimaginable rage flowing just beneath the surface. "We are _going_ to that base. I will go in there _alone_ if I effing have to."

"I wasn't saying that we shouldn't go." Espio explained himself lowly. "I just want everyone to be aware of what could happen."

"I think everybody knows man…" Rogue stressfully rubbed his neck.

Boom just threw the chameleon a harsh glare before addressing Tails. "You know where it is?"

"Yeah, but before we take the risk and go there," the kit glanced at a concerned Penumbra, mental gears turning now that he was over his panic attack, "Can Penumbra sniff around the site? Maybe catch Sonic's or Shadow's scent? That'd be a more solid lead."

"Sonic or Shadow scent?" Nummy tilted his head, and Rouge pointed to her nose to help him. He then nodded. "Okay. Where?"

"Follow me," Boom quickly ordered, his body tense and stiff. He jogged over to the edge of the clearing before anyone could argue, and he heard Penumbra right behind him.

"Hey, Sonic!"

The blue Mobian glanced over his shoulder with a scowl, gaze trained on the red echidna that had called him.

Red gave him a pointed look. "If you find anything, come back and _tell_ us."

Something changed about the speedster's expression, but no person observing could pinpoint exactly what. Then, he gave a nearly imperceptible nod before blasting off, Nummy at his heels.

"While they're gone," Tails locked eyes with Knuckles, more than ready to take action, "We need to come up with a plan."

They had to save their friends before the enemy did anything permanent.

Before they had to dig two more graves.

* * *

"We…made it back."

"Yes, we have."

He just stood there, gazing down at the bustling city, the wind blowing his low hanging quills.

"We can't dawdle here…" A voice said behind him. "We have to find and stop them before it's too late."

"Yeah…I know."

A long tail twitched.

"Let's go."

"…Right."

* * *

 **Next chapter…we find out who those strangers are :D**

 **Oh, and thanks _so_ much for your awesome reviews! They really brighten up my day guys!**


	35. Chapter 35

**Disclaimer- I no own.**

 **Chapter 35- Absolution**

There was a horde of them, infesting the city like insects. They were patrolling up and down the streets empty of any vehicles, piercing red eyes scanning the darkness. Thick clouds blocked the moon, so the only sources of light were the dim flickering streetlights on the sidewalks. There were no lights emitting from any of the buildings around, nothing but an eerie darkness residing within them.

It shouldn't be like this. It didn't matter that it was in the dead of night, this was _Central City_. People should be walking around and enjoying themselves, not hidden away. If there even were regular people here at all…he didn't actually know.

But what he clearly understood was that his home felt…different.

The shift happened after he had returned from Sonic's party in the present after that time monster had been defeated. He knew that he had made it back to his world, but…something had felt odd. And he wasn't the only one to notice it either.

Blaze, who had followed him back to his joy, had sensed it as well. They couldn't tell what was wrong however. The grass was still green, and everything still _looked_ the same, but they couldn't shake the feeling that things weren't right. The duo had agreed on investigating, and well, Central City was the first metropolis that they had stumbled upon.

They couldn't enter the city directly. There were walls around the perimeter with openings guarded by bulky robots, obviously there to control any kind of traffic the city had during the day. He had been all for going in and imploding the mechs where they stood, but Blaze stopped him. She had brought up the point that they needed to be careful, that they needed to gather information before they took action. He had eventually agreed with her, his sharp yet confused gaze trained on the ominous machines in the distance.

He had flown them inconspicuously over the high walls, finding the city overrun and void of any actual citizens. Well, from what they could see anyway. He had landed on a tall hotel, and that's where they were currently, surveying the area and wondering how and why the city ended up this way. They needed answers, and he doubted that the robots down there would be nice enough to fill them in.

"It is past curfew!" Words rose up from the bots below in unison, those monotonous voices causing his golden eyes to narrow. "Those who do not abide by it will be terminated!"

"Curfew…" Blaze's voice was low when she spoke, the volume barely above the winds rustling her ponytail. Her arms were crossed, and her focus snapped to and fro, taking in the sheer amount of enemies. "So that means that there _are_ people here." She then glanced at him, lips pulled downwards. "Silver, were things _completely_ normal before Sonic's-"

"Yes!" The white hedgehog answered, a frown marring his muzzle. "I have _no_ idea why this is happening though!" His brow creased as his mind whirled. "Defeating that Time Eater thing couldn't have caused this…"

"No, but something else could've." Blaze closed her eyes in thought. "We've jumped two hundred years in the future Silver, remember that."

"Yeah, anything could've happened between then and now...but what?" the psychic inquired, wracking his brain for an answer. Where did all of these robots come from? Was every city like this? Every _town?_ More importantly, who made all of them…?

"We can ask around." Before Silver could ask the all-important question of _who_ exactly they were going to ask, Blaze stepped away from the edge of the roof and strode over to a hatch in the center. The purple cat crouched down and opened the miraculously unlocked roof-access door. She peered over her shoulder at him, rolling her eyes. "Did you forget that you landed on a hotel? Since there apparently are people here, this would be a good place to start looking."

She sensed his hesitation to follow, the psychic staring down at the bots beneath them. Blaze inwardly sighed. She realized why he was so distraught and ready to take action, but they couldn't do that before gaining information. "We'll fix all of this eventually, Silver. Come on."

Silver tore his attention from the mechs, nodding at her. "Alright…" He jogged over and peered into the newly formed hole in the roof. There was a short ladder leading down into a dark room. "But it's not like we can't take them all on, y'know."

"I know we can, that's not the point though." Blaze gave him a level look. "I want to take care of them as much as you do, but our actions wouldn't matter if another horde can easily take their place. We _have_ to know what's going on here."

Silver huffed in defeat. "I hate that you make sense."

"Someone has to," she replied in a light tone before steeling herself once more. They don't know if any robots were inside, and sounding any alarms would not do them any favors. The feline didn't wait for a response before jumping down into the dim room, crouching into the landing to soften the impact. She immediately created a small flame in her palm, the orange glow lighting up the space.

It was a supplies closet, filled with open and closed boxes placed on low shelves. She glanced up at Silver who as at the top of the ladder, closing the hatch back. He then floated down, his cyan glow illuminating the walls as well until he grounded himself.

"Nothing's suspicious in here…" the psychic muttered, searching through one of the boxes and pulling out a dirty towel. He scrunched his nose up. "Except for that stain." He promptly dropped it, wiping his hands on his sides.

Blaze didn't want to know. She went straight for the door on the opposite side, gesturing for Silver to follow. The cat made her flame smaller as she carefully cracked open the door, not wanting to gain the attention of any enemy eyes.

She peeked out into the dark hallway, feeling Silver part her upright ponytail so he could do the same. It was pitch black, and she snuffed out the tiny flame in her palm. It provided too much light. She'd ignite it again once they were sure that they were alone.

It was a good thing she did, because the darkness was soon filled with a dull red light, footsteps echoing in the hallway. Blaze frowned before subtly closing the door back, perking her ears to listen. Silver copied her actions, them staring at each other in silence as something – most likely a robot – marched its way down the hall.

Once it had passed the closet the duo were in, Blaze cracked the door open again only to see the back of a bulky mech. The cat blinked in surprise when Silver stepped fully out of the supply closet, one hand wrapped in cyan. He held up a palm and swiftly made a fist. The robot caved into itself instantly, its metal cracking as it fell to the floor.

Blaze shook her head in exasperation as she recalled her flame. "Do you feel better now?"

Silver smugly smiled. "Definitely."

The purple Mobian gazed at all of the doors leading to questionably occupied rooms. "Now we should-" Blaze cut herself off when rapid footsteps thudded against the carpet the way the broken down robot had come. She turned around in time to see two bright red opticals train on her, guns raising and preparing to shoot.

Bullets shot out of the robot's limbs only to be caught by Silver, who had flew in front of the feline. With the flick of a wrist, the psychic sent the projectiles back at the bot, sending it stumbling a few steps.

Blaze saw that their foe wasn't down for the count yet, so she sprinted forward to get up close and personal while the other was recovering from the hits. Covering her hand with red-hot flames, she thrusted her arm into the robot's body, grabbed its inner wires, and harshly pulled them out. Sparks emitted from the machine's core before it crumpled to the floor with a thud.

As she dropped the wires, she heard, "Feels great, doesn't it?"

Blaze scoffed as she turned toward Silver. "I never said it wouldn't, just that there's a time and place for…" She paused at his knowing look before relenting. "Yes, it does."

Silver grinned and was about to suggest that they start going door-to-door, but then multiple creaks filled the air. The psychic and feline tensed up as they found the sources of the sounds. The doors lining the hall were opening, lights being turned on within the rooms that flooded out of the unblocked doorways.

The heroic duo watched keenly as shy heads poked from behind the doorframes, a multitude of frightened eyes taking in the light carnage. The number of curious people per room differed. It ranged from full families to couples to singles of all ages. How underweight a good chunk of them seemed wasn't lost on the Mobian pair.

All of those wary gazes eventually settled on Silver and Blaze, and the heroes expected that some of their caution would dissipate, but no, the crowd became more tense.

Silver threw Blaze a confused glance before raising an innocent hand in a brief wave. "Um…hi?" He inwardly frowned when the parents of the newly immerged group blocked their children with their bodies. "We're not the bad guys here, promise! We just…want some answers."

Silence greeted him, and it seemed like there wouldn't be any verbal response until one of the braver men spoke up. He looked to be in his mid-twenties. "And why…why in the hell should we help you? H-He's coming here because of you!" The man looked at the woman at his side. "W-We need to go back inside." He then focused on the crowd. "We all do! We all know what happens to those who rebel," the human narrowed his eyes at the two mammals, "and to those who are associated."

Apparently the group didn't need to be told twice. They quickly returned to their rooms in a near panic, doors slamming and lights flipping off.

"Wait!" Silver called after the stragglers. They had more questions now than before. "Rebel? What do you mean? Rebel from what?"

"And who's coming here?" Blaze added on, both of them hoping that at least one person would answer them.

"Have you been living under a rock?" A middle-aged woman retorted snappily, herding her three kids inside with the help of her husband. However, one kid – a preteen girl – refused to budge, staring at the downed bots. "Come on baby girl, it's not safe out – Wait, stop!"

The mother had yelled out when the girl jogged over to the duo, eyes wide in terror.

"Don't get too close!" The dad commanded, both him and mom rooted to the spot. "You can't let their smell get on you!"

"Smell…?" Blaze repeated, unable to wrap her mind around all of this. Her golden irises met her partner's. "Silver…what happened to your world?"

The psychic shook his head. "I don't…" He trailed off, for the girl had stopped right in front of them, having disregarded both of her parents' orders. Her stringy hair was swaying above her shoulders.

She seemed as wary as the other humans were, but there was hope in her eyes. "They…They were talking about the tracker."

"The tracker?"

The girl nodded at Silver. "Yeah he…finds anyone who attacks any of the robots. My parents had told be a lot of stories… No one has ever gotten away with it."

Blaze furrowed her brow. "What happens when he finds them?"

The child trained her eyes on the floor as a thick silence hung over them. The Mobian pair automatically knew the answer, and Silver's fists subtly clenched. What exactly was going on?

"I…I have to go now." She was peering over her shoulder at her nervously observing parents. "I don't want to scare them…" The girl then began to back up, waving a hand in goodbye. Her smile was sad. "Maybe…you don't have to worry about the tracker? Maybe…you can defeat him yourself! Good luck…"

Silver and Blaze just watched the parents quickly guide her inside when she had gotten close enough. They were all back in their room within a couple of seconds.

The psychic clenched his jaw while running a hand down his face. "A tracker who… _kills_ people for protecting themselves?" Anger welled up inside him, wanting justice for these citizens. They were terrified to fight back, living in fear from the bots and _whoever_ this tracker guy was. Well, Silver had dealt with things worse than robots, and the tracker – who was most likely a mech as well – didn't worry him at all. He would gladly clear this hotel, and the city, out without a second thought.

He turned towards Blaze, mind set. "Let's-"

"Stay here," the cat interrupted him as she lit a large flame, her resolve as concrete as the hedgehog's. Her piercing stare had settled on the disabled machines in the middle of the floor, a thoughtful frown on her muzzle. "I know that you want to fight all of the enemies, so we should start with the tracker. I assume that he would know more about everything than a random robot on the street, so we can question him."

"You're right…we need to know why he's doing what he's doing, and why people would even need to rebel." Silver absently gazed up at the ceiling. "And what's the range of the robot invasion…" _Also, where's Shadow in all of this…?_

"I have a strong feeling that they hadn't stopped at Central City." Blaze's tail twitched as she crossed her arms. "But I do hope that there are people in the world that aren't living in fear."

Silver stressfully sighed. "I really do hope so." He adjusted one of his gloves, scanning all around them. "I wonder how long we have to wai-" The psychic cut himself off when something slammed, the sound coming from the supply room they had exited out of. That had been the hatch leading up to the roof. The duo faced the open door, unable to actually see within the dark room because of their angles.

They waited with bated breath for the infamous 'tracker' to show himself, Blaze bathing them in darkness once more. However, it didn't stay pitch-black for long. A bright yellow light filtered out of the small room into the hallway; it was flashing erratically, akin to a strobe light. There was also a crackling sound filling the air as well, and if Silver hadn't known any better, he'd say that lightning was going off in that supply closet.

"Either you're brave for waiting me in the dark," there was a gruff chuckle, and Silver's eyes widened. _Is that…? No, it couldn't be…_ The source of the yellow light was getting closer. "Or you're so damned eager to die that you don't even bother running. It makes my job easier though." The newcomer entered the hallway, and both heroes had to hold in a gasp. "I appreciate that."

It was Shadow. He was standing a couple yards away from them, a Chaos Spear hissing in his open palm. The faux-lightning danced like wildfire in those blood red eyes, and the way the light met the shadows gave the striped hedgehog a sinister look. However, that could've probably been achieved without the dramatic lighting.

Shadow's razor quills were unkempt, sticking out everywhere and making him look bigger than he really was. The dark hedgie's claws were sharper than normal, and because of that malicious grin on his face, the teeth shown looked ready to tear. And then his eyes…the glint in them belonged to a predator cornering its prey.

And they had zeroed in on Blaze.

The newcomer laughed again. "It's been a while since anyone's actually stayed to fight. Alright, I'm game."

Silver was starting to question what he was seeing now. The other's posture, his words, his laughter…was this really Shadow? It had to be. Then, something really serious had to have gone down for Shadow to be like this…

Blaze had opened her mouth to respond – thrown aback about the other's current state as well – but Silver beat her to the punch. "So you're the tracker?!"

The grin widened. "Why so surprised? Did you expect a rob-" The rest of the striped one's words died on his tongue once he switched his focus onto Silver. Then, it was like a switch was flipped. The smirk melted off of his face, his quills – while still scruffy – had relaxed somewhat, and his posture no longer screamed 'You're done for'.

Shadow was just staring at him, and out of the corner of the psychic's eye, he saw Blaze warily glancing between them. The Chaos Spear was still lighting up the hallway, but it was weaker now, just like the fire in the other's wide maroon eyes.

The heroic duo didn't expect the doubt and awe present in the striped one's soft voice when he spoke again. "S…Silver…?"

The white rodent almost couldn't respond, too thrown off by the completely open emotion shown in the other's expression. He could see hesitation, disbelief, sadness, and…hope? What in the world was going on?

Once he got over it, Silver replied, "Um yeah…it's me."

Then the room went dark.

Blaze instinctively summoned a flame, her flickering light replacing the flashing spear's. She sucked in a sharp breath when she realized that she was now alone, Silver and Shadow nowhere to be seen. "Silver!" she yelled, and the echoes of her voice were her only responses.

Worry bubbled up in her gut. In any other situation, she wouldn't be concerned with Shadow and Silver being alone. But now, she had no clue what the 'tracker' had in store, especially because of that out-of-character stance change…

Hoping that she could see him from the roof of the building, she dashed back into the supply closet.

* * *

Silver gasped when he was suddenly hit with a blast of cold air, eyes squinting when they were subjected to a drastic lighting change. The moon was uncovered here, it's bright rays bouncing off of the reflective snow and temporarily blinding the psychic.

Before his mind could process that he was currently standing in the middle of a winter wonderland void of robots, his visual of his surroundings were blocked when Shadow stood right in front of him. "Gah!" he shouted, wanting to step back. However, the darker hedgie's calculating stare pinned him to the spot. He then flinched when the other gently pulled one of his ears and poked him in the chest. "Um…"

"You're real…" Shadow pulled back his hand before circling Silver. "You're real! I'm not imagining you!"

The white rodent rose a brow at that gleeful tone. "No, no you're not. I'm real, and," he glanced around only to realize that someone was missing, "and where's Blaze?"

Shadow stopped in front of him, tilting his head innocently. "Who's Blaze?"

"Who's…" Silver gave the other an odd look. "What do you mean? You know who she is! She was with me back there in that hotel!"

"Oh…" Shadow blinked slowly. "The cat? You two are friends?"

"Of course she is, and you should know that!" Silver was seriously concerned for the striped one now. Had he honestly forgotten? And gotten a new personality as well? "What happened to you?"

There was a light and airy chuckle, more genuine than before. "I should be asking you that question." Silver had no idea what he meant by that. "I'll go get Blair-"

"Blaze."

"Right, Blaze. You stay here, okay? Don't move."

Silver had no other choice but to agree. "Alright just…get her." Shadow smiled at him before teleporting away, and Silver felt like he'd just encountered one of the wonders of the world. Shadow just… _smiled._ Something was wrong with him. Multiple things actually.

He was touchy, he laughed, he smiled, and he was apparently _killing_ people. Silver was glad that they had waited for him though; he should be able to give them all the answers they needed.

"Found her!" Silver nearly jumped when Shadow's voice rung out, a scoff following afterward. "Naturally." Blaze instantly wrenched herself out of his grip on her arm, sending him a guarded glare. Shadow frowned at her. "You're kind of mean."

The feline went over to Silver's side, her sharp golds never leaving the striped rodent. "Says the one who kills people for no good reason. How do you sleep at night?"

Shadow shrugged. "I don't need sleep, apparently. But I guess I've slept pretty well those few times I have…"

Blaze's nose scrunched up in distaste, hating how he didn't care about taking people's lives, and Silver desperately needed to solve this massive mystery. "Shadow," the psychic started, "I don't know what's wrong with you, but-"

"Shadow?" Sadness had leaked into the dark hedgehog's tone as he furrowed his brow. He slowly shook his head. "I'm not Shadow. I'm Penumbra, Silver…remember?" The feline and psychic shared a confused look, and Sha – well, _Penumbra_ , had caught it. "You don't…do you?"

 _He's gone crazy_ , was Blaze's first thought. He had renamed himself, developed into a totally different character, and was killing without remorse. Either the striped one had gone completely insane, or someone else had done this to him, which was very possible. She doubted that he alone had created the robot horde.

"What doesn't Silver remember Penumbra?" Blaze asked, going with the flow for now. Opposing the other would get them nowhere.

"You can call me Nummy, if you want. I miss that, actually…" Penumbra gave a meek smile before scratching his head. "To answer you, well…he doesn't remember me, obviously. But amnesia could be normal, I haven't exactly dealt with someone who's been resurrected before…"

"Resurrected?" The hedgehog/cat pair repeated at the same time, shocked. Silver couldn't believe his ears. "Whoa whoa wait, so you're saying that I've _died_ before?"

Penumbra rose a brow. "You can't even recall that? Sure, it's been a while and even my memory's kinda hazy, but I thought that you would've at _least_ remembered-"

"How long has it been since Silver died?" Blaze inquired, her lips pursed.

Nummy sat down in the snow, drawing a design in the soft fluff. "Years," he breathed out, "a lot of years. Two hundred maybe? Yeah…give or take. It's easy to lose count."

 _Two hundred? So it had to be after the party…_ She was slowly putting the pieces together. "What happened to h-"

"Wait Blaze…" The cat paused when Silver whispered to her. He turned them both around so that their backs were to Penumbra. Silver lowered his voice even more. "Are you sure that you want to get answers from him? He's obviously lost it!"

"He's our only option Silver," she curtly retorted, "We can't go to the robots, the people aren't a sure thing, and this is much safer than going to whoever is clearly in charge of this whole situation. And plus, he isn't a completely lost cause. His facts are iffy, but he seems to be intact."

They both peered over their shoulders to see the striped hedgehog making a snow angel in the mush. Silver was dubious. "Are you sure about that?"

Blaze sighed. "Just follow my lead." They faced Penumbra again. He had stopped moving, just lying in the snow with his hands linked behind his head. "Pen-"

"I'm not crazy, you know." Nummy sat up, wiping any fluff off of his body. "If anyone's crazy, it's Silver." He focused on the cat. " _He_ doesn't remember anything."

"Enlighten us then," Blaze suggested, "What had happened to him?"

Penumbra just stared at her for a while before his body slumped. He let out a deep sigh. "What happened to him happened to everyone else."

"Everyone else?" Silver pressed.

Nummy nodded, a faraway look in his eyes. "You, Shadow, Sonic…everyone. My memory's really cloudy because it was really long ago and I wasn't the most…lucid back then. But I do remember that we all went into this huge underwater lab and…we lost."

"How?" Silver pushed.

"To who?" Blaze frowned.

Penumbra closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead. "I forget exactly how. It was all a blur, but what I know is that Eggman killed all of you afterwards."

"Eggman?!" Silver exclaimed. No that couldn't be possible. One, that couldn't have happened, and two, even if it _did_ , they couldn't have lost to _that_ man.

"Yeah, that damned human." Venom leaked into his voice now. "Espio said that he wasn't going to kill them after capturing us, but Eggman went behind his back and…" There was a dangerous glint in those maroon orbs of his. "I'm glad I got to snap his neck."

There was a pregnant pause until:

"Espio…captured…you…snapped… _what?!_ "

"Breathe, Silver," Blaze calmly said, hiding the fact that she too was flabbergasted. "Let's take things one at a time. First," she refocused down at the sitting hedgehog. "Did you say that _Espio_ captured everyone? The one in the detective agency?"

"No. The other one," the striped 'hog simply responded like what he said made sense.

"The…other one…" Penumbra/Shadow was nowhere near reliable. Silver addressed his partner, "Blaze…"

She gave the psychic a fleeting look, but otherwise didn't respond to him. "Moving on, so why didn't Eggman kill you?"

Nummy creased his brow. "I don't know really. Maybe because I was with Espio the whole time? It's fuzzy."

"The other one…right?"

"Yeah."

"And he told you that the others were killed?"

"Uh huh."

"Okay, well," Silver jumped in, "Let's just…forget about the _very_ questionable past. Let's talk about the right now. Shadow…Penumbra…Nummy…whatever you want to be called, _why_ are you killing people?"

Nummy leaned back on his hands. "Because it's been my job for the past two centuries. You know, never growing old really lets you be desensitized to-"

Blaze decided to stop that sentence right there. "Who are you working for?"

"Yeah, who's making you do it?" Silver demanded, wanting to get to the bottom of this.

Penumbra glanced back and forth between them, chewing on his lower lip. He pointedly looked away, claws digging into the snow beside him. "No one's really making me do it…" he began, clearly avoiding the question. "I never really liked humans in the first place, and after what that damned man did…"

"That's not the answer we're looking for, and you know it," the feline chastised, "Spill."

Nummy peered back up at her for a moment before shifting his gaze over to Silver, and they could practically see the gears turning in his mind. "I need to go," he muttered as he stood up, mush dropping off of him.

"Go where?" Blaze's eyes narrowed.

Silver took a slight step forward. "We're going to follow you wherever you go, I hope you know that!"

"No you _won't,_ " Penumbra suddenly snapped, baring his teeth. The duo were instantly reminded of how the striped hedgehog was when they had first met up with him. Shadow was definitely still in there somewhere. "You two stay _here_. Away from robots, away from the isl – away from where I'm going. I don't want you two to die, _again_ ," he said, the last part directed at Silver.

The psychic stared the other down before scoffing. "Well, when it comes to the fate of the world…" He held his hand up, and Penumbra wasn't in control of his body anymore. "…We don't care about our lives."

"Let me go!" Nummy growled out, trying and failing to escape Silver's powers.

Silver didn't listen. Instead, he bobbed his head over to Blaze. "Get the emerald he has in his quills. Be careful."

"Wait no!" Penumbra yelled when the cat nodded and approached him. "I need that to…" He gritted his teeth as Blaze cautiously dug into his head spines, pulling out a dull red emerald. "I need it…." His growls had morphed into whines. "Give it back!"

Blaze immediately noticed that the gem wasn't shining bright like it was supposed to. "What happened to it?"

"I don't know! Let me have it, please?"

 _Great, another mystery,_ Silver thought before uttering, "We'll give it back to you _after_ you take us where you're trying to go. Deal?"

Penumbra's expression was pitiful. "I just don't want you to die!"

"Don't worry about us," Blaze replied before tossing Silver the emerald so he could tuck it into his quills. "Are you going to do it?"

The striped hedgehog exhaled harshly. "Fine, fine! But I swear if you make me relive that _again…_ " Silver stopped using his powers at that, not sensing any lies. He and Blaze were tense however, waiting for any sign of the other attacking. There weren't any. Penumbra simply turned away from them, squinting at something out in the distance. "There." He pointed a finger to the horizon. "That's where I was planning on going."

Two pairs of eyes followed his line of sight, straining to see what the striped one had. It took a moment, but they eventually could make it out.

And 'it' was an island floating in the sky.

"Is that…Angel Island?"

"It is!" Silver affirmed Blaze's guess. He then addressed the other hedgehog. "Why in the heck do you want to go there?" He paused in thought. "Is that were all the robots come from?"

Penumbra didn't look at him. "One of the main factories is on there, along with where we – _I_ stay."

The slip up wasn't lost on the purple Mobian. "If it was only you up there, you wouldn't be so adamant that we stay away. Who else is up there?" Blaze hoped that the striped hedgie would just tell them everything. All of this asking was getting annoying.

"…Robots." Nummy sighed. "Stronger robots than the ones you two took out."

"You're really underestimating us." Silver frowned. "Who cares if they're a bit stronger? We can still-"

"No you can't." Penumbra faced them again, expression grave. "You've forgotten, but…they have energy from the Master Emerald in them that basically makes them impossible to destroy. Trust me, I've tried." He sighed once more. "So can you please stay out of it?"

"What do you expect us to do?" Blaze nearly hissed. "I'm sure that the world is covered with robots, and apparently you don't care. But _we_ do. We aren't going to just sit back and let them and _you_ terrorize innocent people!"

"What if I told you that they would kill me if you went up there?"

Not expecting that, Silver and Blaze just stared at the striped rodent in surprise.

Penumbra returned his gaze onto the floating island. "If you go up there and start a fight, they will recognize you Silver, and they will order _me_ to kill you two. I would refuse, and then they'd cause my heart to go into cardiac arrest. If they don't torture me with the electricity first…"

Silver gaped for a moment before replying intelligently with a, "What?"

"I have a chip inside of me that produces shocks. They haven't done it in a long while because they like me – more or less – but if I don't listen, I'm sure Metal Sonic wouldn't hesitate in pressing the button."

"So that's why you do it?" Blaze asked, her tone both sympathetic and disgusted. "You kill other people so you wouldn't have a target on your back?"

Nummy gave her a false grin. "If you can't beat them, join them." He then turned towards Silver and held a hand out. "Can I have the Chaos emerald back? I'm…on a timer and I need to get going."

After learning that Penumbra's life could be cut short at any time for literally any reason, the psychic couldn't keep the other from returning back to the island. Silver reached into his quills and tossed the emerald back over to Nummy, who caught it with a relieved smile.

"I'll leave now, but…promise me that you won't go up there and fight them?" he pleaded, looking back and forth between them.

Blaze was too busy staring at the moving isle to answer, so Silver nodded. "We won't. Just go before…you know."

Penumbra smiled at him before doing something Silver never _dreamed_ that the striped hedgie would do. The darker Mobian bounded over and _hugged_ him. Tightly. The psychic was shocked into silence as the other squeezed and chirped, "Thank you!"

Silver's jaw was scraping the ground when Nummy pulled away, beaming. "It's best this way." Penumbra then shuffled over to Blaze, holding his arms out. Before the cat could react, he wrapped her up in his arms and lifted her off the ground, shaking her slowly back and forth. "I realize that you don't want to lay low, but I'm glad you're doing it! For your sake and mine!"

"Unhand me! Put me down!" Blaze yowled, struggling to escape his grip.

Penumbra laughed as he did so. "Not a hugger I guess." He calmed down a bit, his smile becoming sadder. "It was great seeing you again Silver, and it was nice meeting you Blaze. Keep out of trouble, okay?"

Then he was gone.

The feline rigidly smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress, wishing that the last few seconds hadn't happened. She peered over at Silver when she was done, seeing that he was still recovering from the unexpected embrace. "Metal Sonic definitely did something to him."

"Oh yeah…absolutely." Silver blinked a couple times before running his fingers through his quills. "But why turn him into a hugger…?"

"Not the main problem here, Silver. We have to go up there."

The psychic made a fist. "I know. Metal and the rest of the bots have to have _some_ kind of weakspot-"

Blaze gave him a level stare. "We aren't fighting them, at least, we aren't going to seek them out." Silver cocked his head and was about to open his mouth, but she continued before he got the chance to say anything. "We need to find the Master Emerald so we can go back."

That was probably one of the last things he expected her to say. "What? Blaze, we can help out this world _now_ by-"

"Risking Shadow's life?" At that, Silver clenched his jaw. Blaze went on. "He could possibly die, and even if we defeat all of the stronger robots, Shadow has been permanently changed. And I personally don't think it was for the better." She thought about the other's rather morbid occupation and his openness for hugs. "Also, don't you want to know about what _actually_ happened two hundred years ago? That possibly had caused all of this?"

Silver knew that she had a good point, multiple points actually, but… "Do we know that the Master Emerald would even work?"

Blaze nodded. "It should. It controls emeralds that can manipulate time and space. There's no reason why it can't as well, more efficiently even."

"So…it's sneaking time?"

"It's sneaking time."

* * *

"If it was storming, this would be the perfect setting for a horror movie," Silver commented as he gazed upon on what he could only describe as an industrial mansion. It looked to be made completely out of metal, two stories high. There were many windows, but only a handful of them had light pouring through.

There was smoke rising into the air, but that didn't escape from the mansion. It came from the sizable factory positioned far behind the massive house. The pair had seen it when they had inconspicuously circled the island using the psychic's powers.

They were now situated behind some dense foliage across from the main entranceway, observing without the possibility of being seen. Hopefully.

"Because the red-eyed metallic bat standing guard at the entrance wasn't enough?" Blaze responded, peeking through leaves at said mech leaning against the wall closest to the front doors. He looked exactly like Rouge, if she had been more masculine.

"Is he really standing guard though?" Silver zeroed in on the quiet mech. "It looks like he's…waiting for something."

Blaze softly clicked her tongue. "It doesn't matter what he's doing. What matters is that he's basically protecting the only way we can get inside." _Things can never be easy._

"We could always try the windows."

"We don't know for sure that the rooms are empty or not, and-"

"I had a gut feeling that you wouldn't keep your promise."

Silver and Blaze nearly jumped out of their skins at the third voice, whirling around to see Penumbra crouching down right behind them. There were splatters of red on him, and they doubted that it was paint.

"Shadow!" Silver barely managed to keep from yelling. "Why do you have _blood_ on you?!"

Maroon irises trained onto him. "I'm not Shadow, and I couldn't have come back clean. Killing people's my job, remember?"

The psychic couldn't believe this. "So you attacked an _innocent_ person?"

Penumbra shook his head, an offended expression on his face. "Why in the hell would I do that? I got a man that was out past curfew. But that's not really important." The heroic duo begged to differ. "Why are you two _here_? You promised!"

Blaze scrunched her nose up at the putrid smell. She mourned for that person's family, if he had any. "We promised that we wouldn't fight anyone. We aren't planning to."

Nummy's lips twitched downwards. "Then why are you two up here?"

"We need the-" Silver stopped himself short when Blaze nudged him. He understood completely. They didn't know what the striped 'hog would do if they told him their plan.

"Need the what?" Penumbra questioned, and when they didn't respond, his features relaxed a bit. "I'm not going to stop you as long as you don't…alert anyone. I promise, and I _keep_ my promises."

The psychic glanced over to the cat, and she nodded after a moment of hesitation. Silver began again. "We need the Master Emerald."

Nummy cocked his head. "That's…wow. It's in the basement. You can't take it though."

"We won't need to," Blaze whispered, "You finding us will actually put us at an advantage. You can teleport us to it."

They should have expected it when Penumbra shook his head. "I can't. I'm not allowed to use my powers inside." He looked over their shoulders at the robot by the door before shifting his attention to the panes of glass. "You could possibly get in through the windows, but I don't know how you'll do that without making noise."

The feline snapped, and a spark lit up her fingertip before going out completely. "We have that covered."

Nummy's eyes went wide. "You can make _fire?_ That's amazing! Well, since you don't have to smash anything, you can go into the kitchen window. It's the one at the far left there."

"A kitchen?" Silver couldn't picture why they had to build an entire kitchen for one person who didn't necessarily have to eat.

"It mostly was for Espio when he was alive. I used it sometimes, but now, no one hardly goes in there."

"Right…" the white hedgehog drawled out, dismissing that first statement. "So how do we get to the basement from there?"

Penumbra tapped his chin in thought, getting blood on it. "The kitchen leads into the main hall. The stairs to the basement are at the end on the left."

"Who's all in there?" Blaze returned her focus to the bat-like mech outside.

Nummy hummed. "That's Bat right there, Omega's never in the house because he always manages the factory…" They didn't question it. They decided that it couldn't be _that_ Omega and moved on. "Metal wasn't there when I left, but he could be back. Rabbit, Psy, and Boar are out because its daytime in their sectors."

"Sectors…? Never mind." Silver ousted that train of thought. Getting to the Master Emerald was priority, not knowing what in the heck those robots were doing. "So we just have to watch out for Metal then, since you're going to distract Batty over there, right?"

"I could if you want me to. It shouldn't be too hard." Penumbra shrugged. "He likes hearing my experiences with tracking. I guess I could…make a long story up."

"Yeah, do that." The psychic followed Blaze's line of sight and zoned in on the winged robot as well. "What is he doing anyway?"

The striped mammal scratched his cheek. "Waiting on me. I'm cutting my time pretty close." His voice lowered. "Just…do what you have to do and get out of there, alright? I'll be off."

Penumbra suddenly warped out of existence only to reappear in front of the mansion in plain sight. The hiding pair watched as he held up a hand in greeting, a bright grin on his muzzle. Bat responded the same way, fist-bumping the hedgehog once he got close enough. They were having a conversation, but it was too quiet to hear.

They disappeared inside.

Blaze's golden orbs did one sweep of the immediate area before murmuring, "Let's go." She burst out of the foliage and headed straight for the dark window, a flying Silver right behind her. They were both low to the ground, not needing any unwanted attention.

When they got to the pane of glass, Silver watched Blaze's back when she reached up and splayed her fingers across the smooth surface, heating it up. Only a couple of seconds passed before the glass began to drip, the feline's hot hands making an opening that was as easy as molding a hole in clay.

Within the minute, she was on the other side. The hedgehog was careful in trailing after her, not wanting to get burned. Some of his quills were singed. Nothing major.

They scanned the dark room, and like what Penumbra had said, it seemed extremely unused. There was dust covering most of the countertops, and there were cobwebs in the corners of the space. Dust particles were floating in the air, and it took everything within them to not cough.

There was an odor coming from the fridge; they stayed clear of that. Both of their gazes found the exit door at the same time. Silver slowly floated over while Blaze tip-toed, barely emitting any noise. After approaching it, they pressed their ears against the slab of metal listening.

"Right, it was a whole _gang_ of them and all they could take down was two bots."

"H-Ha! H-Humans are so weak! S-So did they scatter when you showed up?"

"Actually they…hey, can I finish in my room? In the first time in like years, I feel tired."

"W-Whatever. I-I don't care. A-As long as you tell me how you got them! D-Did you break their necks? G-Gut them? B-Bleed them out?"

"Once I get comfy under my covers, I'll tell you."

"I-I hate you and your biotic needs."

Their voices then lowered in volume until they couldn't be heard anymore. The duo waited a minute – just to see if they were really in the clear – before cracking open the door, its movements surprisingly smooth.

The lit main hallway was long and wide, a couple doorways lining each side of the space. It was bare, empty of any decorations. The only splash of color in the room was the purple rug in the middle of the floor.

They didn't pay the blandness any mind as the pair swiveled their heads toward the opposite end of the hall. On the right, there were curving stairs leading up to a second story they couldn't see. On the left, there was an open doorway that had steps going down. It had to be the way to the basement.

Wasting no time, Silver picked both of them up and silently zoomed down the hall; Blaze didn't protest.

Getting to the stairwell was no problem, and floating down underground was a walk in the park as well. His cyan glow provided just enough light for them to see the metal corridor. The psychic decreased their speed once he noticed that a green pulsating glow began to mix with his blue one.

Two pairs of yellow orbs fixated on the brilliant Master Emerald sitting in a large cylinder tube on the far side of the relatively small basement. Well, it may be small, but it wasn't anywhere near empty. The contained Master Emerald was on top of a machine with buttons and switches all over, a multitude of wires sprawled out on the floor like snakes.

Lining the walls were many tools hanging on hooks, ranging from wrenches to blowtorches. There were also tables attached to the walls, littered with various implements as well.

"This is…some kind of workshop?" Silver inquired, eying a saw.

"It looks like it, but we're aren't here for the tools." Blaze stepped up to the machine holding the Master Emerald. "We're here to change the future."

"Right." Silver approached the large gem as well, feeling a bit intimidated. "I've never messed with the Master Emerald before though."

"It's a stronger Chaos emerald, Silver." The feline placed a hand on the glass, feeling the energy within. She wouldn't try to do this herself however. The psychic had more experience with this dimension's gems. "Don't' be afraid…but do remember that we are scrunched for time."

Silver heavily breathed out. "Yeah…I remember." Taking a deep breath, he put both of his palms on the transparent surface, connecting with the immense energy within the huge jewel. It was almost too much, but he maintained his connection. Alright, he guessed that he was ready. Two hundred years. When it all went bad. _Here we go_. "Chaos – _ahh!_ "

His entire body convulsed when something akin to lightning struck the middle of his back, painfully contracting all of his muscles.

"Silver!" Blaze cried out in shock at her partner's agonized yell, watching him slump to the ground. She whirled around only to duck, just missing getting hit right in the face. She instantly focused on the newcomers in the room, her eyes marginally widening at the sight of them.

They were robots, unsurprisingly. One was the exact replica of Silver, even the amount of face quills was correct. Instead of his eyes glowing red like the rest of the mechs, his was a bright cyan, those orbs glued to Silver's twitching body on the floor. The bot's right arm wasn't attached, torn off somehow. It was held in the white machine's left intact limb.

The other robot was currently on all fours, his piercing red opticals boring into cautious golden orbs. Sparks were coming out of his partially open mouth, threatening to send another rod of electricity her way. His back was filled with tiny metallic spines, actually copying a hedgehog's natural quills instead of smoothening them out. He was dark red and black, like Penumbra.

The Nummy look-a-like flickered his carmine eyes over to his partner. "Aren't you glad I accidentally severed your arm during that little spar, Psy?"

"Not the time." The bot named Psy dropped his unusable arm, raising his other. His eyes and the circular marking on his palm flashed simultaneously at the cat. "State your business here."

There was a scoff from who Blaze could only assume was Boar. "State your business… There's no need for formalities here!" The hedgehog mech cackled. "Let's just kill them…" Boar glanced over at a recovering Silver. "… _again_ in his case!"

Before the enemies got a chance to make a move, the purple cat gritted her teeth and sent heat to her hands. Fireballs formed within a second, and she hurled them the robots' way. Every ball she launched was instantly replace with another, and it was thrown again.

After launching ten – from each hand – she paused only to see that her attacks were doing nothing. There was a little char on their metal hides, but that was it.

Applause came from Boar, who was settling himself onto his hind legs. "You're fiery! I like that! Killing you will feel _so_ much better! I mean, you already brought the rat over there back to life somehow, and now you had the nerve to enter our hub! This'll be fun, don't you agree Psy?"

"Sure," replied the Silver replica before he held up two fingers, them lighting up cyan at the tips.

Blaze tensed, getting ready to dodge another attack, but then the duo of evildoers went stock-still, shrouded in blue. She let out a tiny sigh of relief when Silver found his way back to his feet, muscles under control now.

There was a deep frown on his muzzle as he held out his own glowing hand. "We've come this far… We aren't losing to a bunch of copies!"

Boar snorted. "Forgetting that you already did, rat? Psy, show them who's the real winners around here."

Psy's eyes flashed, and the heroic Mobians were suddenly wrapped by the formerly limp wires on the ground. Silver's arm was forced to his side as the cables painfully tightened around them. He yelled out when they began to dig into his skin, losing his focus and freeing their adversaries.

"N-No!" Blaze barely got out, blood dripping out of her widening cuts.

"Well that was pathetic." Boar snickered as he bristled his artificial spines. "But what did I really expect from a zombie? Let's end this Psy so we can put you back togeth-" The robot's words were cut off when he was punched right in the face, sending him stumbling backwards.

Silver would have cheered at the appearance of Penumbra if he hadn't been agonizingly immobile.

Nummy growled at the bot regaining his footing before snapping his maroon irises over to Psy. He launched himself at the psychic robot, them disappearing from sight a split second later.

"Focus on the Master Emerald, Silver!" Blaze ordered the white hedgehog once the wires fell to their feet, needing him to get his mind right. "I'll hold him off!" She didn't know exactly how, but she was going to do it. The psychic nodded at her before facing the jewel once more. The feline covered his back, her fists aflame as she watched the remaining robot recover.

"Lucky hit," Boar spat, sparks falling out of his mouth again, "Didn't even hurt!" Without any further warning, a Chaos Spear – it acted just like one – flew out of the other's gaping jaw. Acting quickly, Blaze produced a plume of fire that met the bolt halfway, successfully stopping it. The flames were quickly replaced with thick smoke, and with a robot that _lunged through the attack._

However, before metallic claws had the opportunity to tear through her, Penumbra reappeared right in front of the cat, grabbing hold of Boar's wrists to stop his momentum. Nummy slid back a couple of inches, his quills nearly touching the feline.

The red and black hedgie whipped the bot to the side, sending him sprawling into the wall, knocking some tools on the floor. Boar got back up like he hadn't just been countered. He shook his head, tisking. "Oh Penumbra. Switching sides are you? Do you really want to fight for them? You know what happened _last_ time…"

"Well this isn't last time!" Nummy snarled back, his quills bristling. "They aren't going to take it! Let them do what they want! They'll leave!"

Boar crouched down low to the floor, the two combatants doing so simultaneously. "It doesn't work like that, and you know it! They can mess with the Master and ruin us! What happened Penumbra? Are you going soft because of the rat and the girl? You haven't worked with them for two centuries!"

"It doesn't matter," the striped Mobian replied before teleporting and roundhouse kicking Boar in his head.

The bot tumbled a bit until he righted himself. "I swear if I could do that same damned trick, you would've already been dead!" Boar tilted his head. "I could just end your traitorous life with the press of a button, but no, I want to see you bleed!"

"You're going to have to fight for it then!" Penumbra gathered a Chaos Spear in his palm. "I hope I get to tear you apart. You were _always_ my least favorite."

"Naturally. I _am_ your better self!" Boar threw up a handful of spears, aiming at Nummy every time he warped away. When the robot stopped for a second, Penumbra hurled his, missing by a centimeter. "Give it up!" Boar taunted, "You can't beat me. You're delaying the inevitable!"

The striped hedgehog shot a glance over at Blaze, and she sensed the urgency within it. Penumbra knew that he was doing just that, prolonging his death. He was stalling for them.

"Blaze! I did it!"

The cat whirled around to see the large portal beside the ME, the mist within it swirling in a slow circle. Relief filled her system for a moment until she turned back to the fight just in time to witness a long thin metal quill impale itself in a distracted Penumbra's head, easily piercing the brain.

Two more managed to join that spine before Nummy collapsed to the ground, unmoving.

"What a fight." Boar's sarcastic voice bounced off the walls, barely registering in Blaze's muddled brain. "One down, two to go." She felt the robot's heated gaze on her.

Then fingers gripped the collar of her dress and pulled her into the portal.

* * *

They landed hard.

Silver rolled a couple of times until he ended up on his back, absently looking up at a bright blue sky. Sounds of a bustling city reached his ears along with the chirps of nearby birds, no whirling of gears or clanking of metal. He heard cheerful people below, unburdened and free.

He sat up, gazing over and seeing that Blaze had already done so. She was searching around, but she wasn't taking anything in. How could she? Silver knew that he couldn't, not after what he'd just witnessed. Nummy…Penumbra…Shadow had died for them. As soon as he had interfered, he had known his life had been at risk.

They couldn't let that happen again.

Silver wobbly stood up and walked to the edge of the roof they had fell onto, smearing the blood on his body as he did so. There was heavy traffic both on the streets and the sidewalks. They were in Central City. Past Central City.

"We…made it back," he muttered, going over what Shadow had told them. What had sent the future down that dangerous path.

"Yes, we have." Blaze's voice was hardly a whisper. Her words were breathy like the breeze.

"… _we all went into this huge underwater lab…"_

The only location he knew of that description was…

"We can't dawdle here…" It seemed like Blaze had come to the same conclusion. "We have to find and stop them before it's too late."

Silver winced when he rubbed a finger over one of his deeper cuts. "Yeah…I know." He turned to make eye contact with her, the grief in their gazes near identical. They couldn't let the sadness tear them down however. It propelled them forward to prevent all that had happened – to prevent all that _would_ happen.

Blaze's tail twitched as she bobbed her head in a general direction. "Let's go."

Silver took a deep breath. "…Right." Determination swirled beneath his golden orbs. "Let's go save the future."

It wasn't long until they took to the skies.

* * *

 **Next chapter…maybe Penumbra wasn't crazy after all.**


	36. Chapter 36

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co. They belong to a company that doesn't like to share.**

 **Chapter 36…**

" _While they're gone," Tails locked eyes with Knuckles, more than ready to take action, "We need to come up with a plan."_

 _They had to save their friends before the enemy did anything permanent._

 _Before they had to dig two more graves._

… **Who's up for dodgeball?**

"So…" Tails ran stressed fingers through his bangs, cogs in his mind whirling. "I've thought of a couple of options on how we can do this. We can go with the subtle approach. We could sneak into the base, find Sonic and Shadow, and then get out of there, avoiding as much conflict as we can. Our only objective would be to get Shadow and Sonic back."

Knuckles was all for this plan until the last statement. He rose a brow, a frown marring his muzzle. "Our _only_ objectives? No getting the Master Emerald? No beating the snot out of Espio, Metal, and Eggman?"

The yellow kit shook his head, biting his bottom lip. "Yeah, none of that."

"I mean…" Rosy personally liked the plan. Shadow and Sonic were more important than getting revenge at the moment. "It seems pretty safe! Nobody would hopefully get hurt if we go with that. We've dealt with enough pain already…"

Her words resonated throughout the group of Mobians outside of the Rabbit's home.

Amy, who was standing beside her bubblegum double, pursed her lips. "I get what you're saying Rosy, and that's why I don't like that plan at all. We've gone through _so_ much! It's time that the evil Espio and his rotten crew learn what happens when they mess with us!"

"They messed with the bull, now they're gonna get the horns!" Rogue flapped his wings to fly in front of Amy, missing Rosy's surprised look. The bat held up a hand. "I like the way you think, new Pinky! Gimme some!"

The pinkette high-fived the bat with a determined cheer, and her twin was more than ready to back up her own decision. "Are you serious Rogue?" Said Mobian peered over to her, and she put her hands on her hips. "What are you suggesting we do? Just run in there recklessly?"

"Not recklessly." Rogue corrected her. _Because doing that brings nothin' good,_ he thought, the image of him and Silver breaking into the underground base popping up before being replaced with Mephiles' dead body. They couldn't afford to do anything reckless anymore. "But that wasn't what I was gettin' at. I'm agreeing with your twin because they already know that we're coming, right? So sneaking around isn't going to get us what we want."

Rouge, observing the little scene, hummed a bit, understanding where her male counterpart was going with this. "So you want us to go in and finish it hon?"

Rogue glanced over at her with a smirk. "'Course I do. Don't you, Roo?"

She returned the expression. "Of course. And well," the agent then addressed the rest of the group, "Do you all think that Sonic and Shadow would let us just waltz out of there without a fight?"

Rosy sighed, not thinking about that before. "No, but…"

"I agree with Rosy. It's still highly dangerous to just run in there fighting everything in sight." Espio crossed his arms, brow furrowing. "I know that we want to end things once and for all, but we can't risk our lives like that."

 _The voice of reason!_ Rosy mentally cheered.

"We're risking our lives either way." Red cracked some of his knuckles. "Like with Rogue said, they know we're coming. If we sneak in, I'm sure that we aren't getting out of there without fighting something. Might as well initiate it. And that means a lot, coming from me."

"Yeah, what he said means _tons_ ," VC confirmed, "I'm liking this full-frontal assault idea. We can't let them surprise us!"

Amy had a broad smile on her face, proud that almost everyone had jumped onto her bandwagon. "We're going to take them down!"

"Whoa whoa! Before we commit to anything." Vector refocused on Tails. "What was your second option?"

The two-tailed fox blinked before giving a weak chuckle. "It was what Amy said. Yeah I agree that it could be less safe, but I have Sonic and Shadow in mind too. They definitely wouldn't let us leave."

Knuckles grunted. "I like this idea better than the other one. You kill three birds with one stone."

"Alright…" Tails cleared his throat. "So just to make it official, who all _doesn't_ want to go with plan two?"

The only person to raise their hand was Rosy.

The pinkette kind of expected this, but she _didn't_ expect TT not going along with her. When she gazed curiously at him, the quiet fox responded, "W-We are going to be in d-danger either way… I-It's worse to be caught off guard."

Rosy's arm slumped to her side. "I just don't want any more deaths, is that wrong? Mephiles died because of Sonic not thinking, and our Cream and her family died because of how we fought those robots in Station Square! If we had done something different, she could have-"

She was effectively silenced when Rogue put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey. Cream's, Cheese's, and Vanilla's deaths _weren't_ your fault. The only person we can blame it on is Espio. He _started_ the whole mess, yeah?" He sadly smiled at her and provided a comforting squeeze. "That's why we wanna go all in. It'll be for Cream, for Mephy, for everyone. And plus, our Blue said himself that no one else was going to die." Rogue winked and brought up a fist, his lips twitching upwards. "You up for a fight?"

Rosy stared at the clenched fingers before letting out another sigh, a defeated grin growing without her permission. She sniffed before bumping her fist with Rogue's. "Full-frontal."

"YES." Omega, who had been waiting for the true confirmation, rotated his deadly arms. "I CANNOT WAIT TO COMPLETLEY DESTROY THE ENEMY."

VC snorted. "That's the one thing you and I can agree on, big guy."

"I can't wait to go!" Charmy gushed, punching and kicking the air.

"It's a search, rescue, _and_ destroy mission!" CB said just as energetically, "I can't wait either!"

"Yes you two can! You two are staying with Ms. Vanilla and Cream!" Vector sternly told them, tone inarguable.

Charmy gasped. "But _why!_ "

CB pouted. "You can't tell me what to do! Once Silver wakes up, he'll say that I can go!"

"Look!" Cream pointed over to the front door, seeing said psychic standing in the doorway like CB's words alone had summoned him. "Your Mr. Silver's awake!"

"Yeah…" Silver hissed out as he stumbled into the yard, holding his head. "And I have a massive headache…" The psychic then tripped over his own feet. He was about to face-plant into the ground, but CB buzzed over and caught him just in time. Silver gave him a thankful smile; it looked more like a pained grimace. "Thanks Charmy…"

The white hedgehog eventually regained his balance, continuing his trek over to the others. CB flew beside him, wringing his fingers in worry. "Are you okay Silver? You did get knocked out after saving us from the gigantic blast!"

"I'm just peachy…" Silver muttered as he stopped beside Rosy, slightly leaning into her. "But I did do that huh? I'm awesome…"

Rosy lightly giggled. "You're _really_ awesome for that Silver. You saved all of our lives." She then frowned, seeing now that he was rubbing his temples. "How bad is it? From one to ten?"

"Twenty-seven." He breathed out before gazing at everyone. "So what…is everybody doing out here? Planning a…party for the…most amazing psychic ever?"

Rogue heavily exhaled. "I wish bro, I wish…"

Suddenly more alert gold orbs zeroed in on the bat, that subdued tone catching him off guard. "What's that…supposed to mean? Did something…happen?" No one answered him at first, and he let out a breathy laugh. "Come on…guys! Don't…bring my good mood…" His laughs trailed off. "…down…"

"Silver…" Red finally began. "Don't overreact, okay?" He suggested even though he had an inkling that the psychic was going to do just that. The echidna took a deep breath. "The evil Espio kidnapped Shadow and this place's Sonic."

Silver went wide-eyed, staring at the red Mobian. Then his breaths became shallower and shallower, his chest rising up and down too quickly.

"What's happening?!" Charmy cried out.

"H-He's hyperventilating!" TT answered, lost on what to do.

Rosy sucked in a sharp breath before standing in front of the hedgehog and grabbing his arms. "Silver! It's alright! We're going to get them! Snap out of it!" Her friend's eyes had glazed over at this point, and she wasn't sure he was seeing her any more. His breaths were quickening. "Silver! Calm-" Yellow irises rolled to the back of his head, and Silver went limp. Rosy grunted when he leaned heavily against her. "-down?"

"Huh…" CB flew over to the pair, cocking his head at the psychic. "It's been a while since he's done that…"

"What…are you not _concerned_?" Espio asked, bewildered.

"He was fine after he woke up the first time!" The bee chirped. "He'll be fine now too!"

Tails rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, if he's alright then…we'll fill him in when he wakes back up?" There were a couple of hesitant nods, and he continued, "Since we're going all in, here's what we'll have to do…"

* * *

Boom's emerald orbs widened marginally when he had pushed past the last of the foliage, slowing down at the sight of the empty space, the charred grass, and the gaping crater in the middle of the clearing. The house had been obliterated. No hint of it remained. He couldn't be too surprised though; that mushroom cloud was massive.

His double's home was gone, but it could be rebuilt. There was no permanent damage. No one died.

Unlike…

Boom gritted his teeth and glared down at his feet. No. He refused to cry again. He refused to shut down again. He couldn't. Not now. Mephiles was…gone…but Stripes could still be brought back. Still could be saved. He couldn't do that with his mind fuzzy and dysfunctional. He had to pull his shitty self together.

He refused to make any mistakes this time.

The blue hedgehog subtly and quickly wiped any wetness that had formed in the corners of his eyes. He exhaled silently before giving the darker hedgehog to his left a sidelong glance. Penumbra's sharp maroons were trained on the crater as well, his expression shocked. Good. He hadn't seen that.

"Go smell 'em out," Boom ordered. He didn't wait for any kind of response before strolling forward, wanting to find where one of those shitstains had written in the dirt. He ignored the eyes on his back as the ground dipped, him scanning for the words. He found them about a bit of a distance from the edge, big and clear.

 _Aquatic base…Where that damned chameleon is…_ Boom clenched a fist and pulled back his arm, about to throw a punch, imagining that purple jackass's face instead of the letters in the dirt. Yes, Mephy's death was Boom's fault. A part of him wanted to say all of it was, but the more logical part of him blamed the evil Espio as well. He started all of this shit. Boom was going to end it with his own hands.

Growling deeply, Boom made to punch, but his movement was halted. Blinking, the blue hedgehog gazed over to see Penumbra gently holding his wrist, keeping him from swinging. Boom hated that knowing look in those dark eyes. Penumbra was more emotional than Stripes, and right now, he despised that.

Scowling, the speedster attempted to pull his arm free. Nummy held tight. "Let go of me and do your job, dammit!" Boom snapped, ire leaking into his voice. Doing so had the opposite effect than he wanted. Sadness swirled beneath those maroons, and suddenly Boom was yanked forward. It took a moment, but he eventually figured out what was happening.

He was being hugged.

His arms hung limp as Nummy embraced him tightly. Boom hated this too. He didn't like being comforted. He didn't want anyone's sympathy. Especially from someone who basically didn't know _anything_. He didn't want it dammit. He didn't…

The blue speedster bit his bottom lip hard, squeezing his eyes shut, the threat of tears very present again. He reopened his jaded emeralds when Penumbra pulled away, the striped hedgehog searching his face. "You okay?" His hands were situated on the azure one's shoulders.

 _No, I'm not okay._ "I'm fine," Boom clipped, stepping away so the other wouldn't be touching him anymore. "Don't do that shit again," he muttered afterwards.

Penumbra tilted his head at him before saying softly. "No more sad? I no like sad…"

"I said that I'm _fine,_ " the blue Mobian bit out, and for the first time, he regretted doing so when Nummy subtly flinched, black ears lowering. Boom looked off to the side, stiffly folding his arms across his chest. "Just…go do your job."

The striped hedgehog eventually nodded and crouched low to the ground, focusing on the words in the dirt. He sniffed that before lopping over to the trees that were just outside of the range of the blast. Penumbra slowly combed the circumference of the area, weaving in and out of sight. Boom watched in silence.

Penumbra went around once, twice, before returning over to the azure hedgie with a frustrated expression on his face. "No find," he said with a slight frown.

"Dammit," Boom cursed. So they had no choice but to go to that base, whether it was a trap or not. "Let's get back to the brats." He bobbed his head in the direction they came from. "See what kind of shitty plan they thought of. And I swear that if you tell _anyone_ you hugged me, I'll tear you a new one, understand?"

Penumbra creased his brow, opening and closing his mouth until he finally got out, "No?"

Boom resisted face-palming. "Of course you don't. Just keep _quiet_ about the hug."

Nummy seemed to understand now, comprehension showing in his features. "Why?"

The speedster just scowled at him and turned on his heel, about to blast off back toward the others. However, a new voice took him by surprise and made him pause.

"Sonic! Shadow! Wait!"

That voice was very familiar, and that was why Boom was suddenly very confused. _The…psycho? Why in the hell is he out here?_ The azure Mobian spun back around only to narrow his eyes, wondering what in the world was going on. The psychic didn't have those red cuts on his body before, and who in the hell was that purple cat with him?

"…What?" Penumbra questioned as the two landed, having flown over the tree tops to get here. Even _Stripes 2.0_ was confused, and that was saying something.

Silver and the mystery feline landed a good distance away from the hedgehog duo, glancing around the clearing like they had no idea what happened there. Silver should though. Boom remained silent for the time being, observing them.

"First off…" the wounded Silver started, his brow furrowed, "What happened here? Where's your house, Sonic?"

"I'm sure it's a long story Silver," the cat said, cut up just like the white hedgehog. There were multiple slits in the fabric of her dress. "We can find that out _later._ "

The psychic nodded. "You're right Blaze. That's not important right now."

 _Blaze? I've heard that name before,_ Boom thought, working his mind. The answer then came to him in the form of a very small kitten. Blaze was the name of Silver's and CB's pet cat, that looked scarily similar to the purple Mobian standing in front of him. Why…?

" _Blaze is an actual Mobian in my world."_

Shadow's words from that dreaded campfire popped into his head, and that put together one piece of the puzzle. Boom inwardly frowned. But how in the hell did Silver know her? And was out of the house? And hurt somehow?

His answer came to him as another memory.

" _Were you born here?"_

 _Silver tilted his head in confusion. "What kind of question is that? Of course I was born here. Station Square in fact before I moved away."_

 _Shadow slowly nodded. "Okay. Because in my world, you came from the future."_

What this that Silver? Because it sure as hell couldn't be the one that was supposed to be at the Rabbit's house. Boom focused on Penumbra for a split second. _He did call him Shadow…_

He was thrown out of his musings when Silver took a step forward, glancing between him and Penumbra. "What's important is that you listen to us. No matter what you do, you can't-"

"Whatever you're gonna say is going to have to wait," Boom cut him off, inwardly snorting at how taken aback they looked. He didn't care. He wasn't the Sonic they knew, and he was going to set that straight. Apparently they've been out of the loop somehow. "I'm not the Sonic that you're friends with, and he's not Shadow."

That made Silver freeze up. "What...?"

"What are you talking about?" Blaze questioned slowly, narrowing her golden eyes at him.

Boom tapped his foot on the ground in irritation. He had half the mind to just take them to the others so the newcomers could bother _them_ with questions instead. In fact, that's exactly what he was going to do. He opened his mouth and was about to tell them to just follow him, but Nummy's voice interrupted him.

"I not Shadow," Penumbra stated with his broken speech, gesturing to himself. "I Penumbra."

"Penumbra!?" Silver and Blaze repeated at the same time, and Boom rose a brow. It sounded like they recognized the name. But how could they if they didn't know what was going on?

"Silver, are you sure that we came back to the right time?"

"I think so! I mean…they're alive, aren't they?"

"Back to the right time?" Boom repeated, not believing what he was hearing. "The hell does that mean? Did you two really come from the fucking _future_ before coming here?"

The cat/hedgehog pair whipped their heads back in the azure hedgie's direction, wide-eyed. They both tensed up, their gazes wary now. "If you're not Sonic," Blaze focused on Penumbra, "and if you're not Shadow. Then where are they?"

"I _am_ Sonic," Boom spat, "Just not the one you know." He then calmed down, his frown morphing into a scowl. "They were taken."

"By who?" Was he imagining it, or was Silver's voice a little shaky?

Boom decided to be blunt and honest. They were going to be twisted into all of this eventually. "Espio took them, and _no_. It's not the one you're thinking about," he said when Silver opened his mouth, "It's another effing one."

"Another…Espio?" The psychic swallowed thickly when he looked at Penumbra before turning to the cat. "Blaze…he…wasn't lying?"

"If we choose to believe whoever this is," Boom didn't appreciate the suspicion in that feline's voice. Like he'd lie about _any_ of this. "Then yes, Penumbra was telling the truth."

Nummy perked up at his name, and the azure speedster was instantly lost. They knew Penumbra? "How in the hell do you know him?" he butted into their conversation, "You don't know anything that's goin' on, but you know him? That doesn't make any damn sense."

The pair shared a look before nodding. Silver ran a hand through his quills. "We met him in the future. So yeah, that answers your question from before too."

Penumbra cocked his head, hearing that word for the first time. "Future…?"

Blaze narrowed her observant orbs on the striped one. "What's wrong with him?" The inquiry was directed at Boom.

Said Mobian eyed her. "I'm guessin' that he was completely fluent from whenever you came from. Well, he's basically an effing baby now, so get used to it."

Silver gaped like a fish before shaking his head. "We'll get to that later. Are you thinking about going to Aquatic base?"

"Silver!" Blaze hissed, "We don't know if-"

"Yeah, we _don't know_." He said to her, and she backed down after a few moments. Silver spoke again. "So are you? For any reason any time soon?"

Boom didn't know what to make of that question or the interaction before it. He clicked his tongue. "Why the hell do you want to know?"

"Just answer me, _please_ ," the psychic almost pleaded.

The azure Mobian was curious to where this was going. "We _are_ because Str – Shadow and Sonic were freakin' kidnapped and taken there."

"Well you can't go bec – Wait…What?" Silver cut himself off. "Did you just say that…" Boom had a 'did I stutter?' expression on his face, and the white hedgehog's shoulder's slumped. "Oh no…"

"They were… _taken_ to Aquatic base?" Blaze closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. "It would have helped if Penumbra had told us that information…" She reopened her piercing irises and locked onto Nummy. "Penumbra…" Said Mobian's ears twitched, maroons taking in her unfamiliar appearance. "Were they indeed taken there?"

There it was again, the disbelief. Boom hated her already. He hadn't even _done_ anything to her! He glared. "And you don't believe me, cat, because…?"

"Because of that," she easily retorted, her stare wary.

"Sonic and Shadow gone." Penumbra's voice rose up, his own gaze still confused as it snapped between the two newcomers. "No smell."

"No smell?" Silver's ears lowered somewhat. "You have to be him…

Blaze nodded, her lips pressed into a thin line. "There's no other explanation. And since Sonic and Shadow _are_ at Aquatic base, then we have other choice but to rescue them. Despite…"

"Despite what?" Boom asked, tone harsh. Those two were making no sense to him, and he was tired of it. "Why didn't you want us to go to that damned base?"

Silver gave him an odd look. "Yeah, you really aren't Sonic…" Then he proceeded to _not_ answer the speedster's question. "Do you have a plan to get them back?"

"No," he nearly growled out. The white hedgehog was lucky that he was saving up his punches for a specific chameleon. "But the others back where I came from probably has one. One that I'll have to fix."

"Take us to them!" Boom bristled his quills at the psychic. _I don't get told what to do._ Silver must've gotten the message, because he innocently held up his hands. "Please?"

Boom inwardly scoffed. He liked this psycho over the other one. This Silver was easier to intimidate.

"Before we go," Blaze's expression softened as she gave Penumbra her attention. "I know that you won't understand this now, but…thank you."

Penumbra's perplexed stare flickered over to Boom, who subtly shrugged. Nummy met golds once again. "You're…welcome…?"

The ends of her lips twitched. She then refocused on the azure hedgie, any hints of a smile gone. "You may lead now."

"I don't need your stupid permission," Boom retorted before zooming out of the clearing, a prominent frown on his muzzle.

 _Weird ass cat._

* * *

Silver didn't know what to think as he flew low to the ground, weaving through tree trunks with Blaze running at his side. They came back to the past to keep their friends from running into their doom, but instead, they found out that Penumbra was actually _Penumbra_ and not Shadow somehow, that there were two Sonics (one of them needed soap for his mouth), and that the other Sonic and Shadow were trapped _inside_ Aquatic base.

The place they needed to stay away from.

"Don't think too hard about it Silver," Blaze advised as she hopped over a thick root, her eyes trained on the impossible Penumbra. He was a good distance in front of them, agile on his four legs. The questionable Sonic was out of sight, far ahead. The striped hedgehog was nice enough to stay behind to guide them. "First we find out what exactly is going on here, then we learn their plan. If we change that, then hopefully that future wouldn't happen again."

"Right." Silver focused on the darker 'hog as well. "Do you think that there really are doubles? Or that just everyone around here has gone crazy?"

The duo began to slow down once Penumbra started to. "We're about to find out."

They burst out of the foliage, and Silver's muscles locked up at what he saw. Penumbra kept going, but he and Blaze couldn't bring themselves to move forward. The psychic grounded himself as he stared, flabbergasted. Blaze was in the same condition; her yellow orbs were wide as they scanned the yard.

Sonic had taken them to the others alright.

A _lot_ of others.

More than they expected, anyway. However, it wasn't the number that shocked them, it was that they were seeing _double._ There were two Tailses, two Vectors, two Charmys, two Knuckleses, two Rouges (they suspected the male was a twin and not some long lost brother), and two Amys.

And one of those pinkettes were propping up an unconscious white hedgehog.

Oh Chaos.

"You asked me if we found anything." Sonic, who was standing by one of the red echidnas, turned Silver's and Blaze's way. "That's what we found."

All attention was suddenly on them, but the psychic couldn't tear his eyes away from his mirror image leaning heavily on an Amy. He…had a double too?

"That explains Penumbra thinking that you've died before," Blaze whispered to him, "Because the _other_ you did."

Silver slowly blinked at her, still processing all of this. "…Was there anyway that we could've gotten injected with drugs while we were fighting back there?"

Blaze gave him a look that clearly said no. They in fact did _not_ have hallucinogens circulating in their systems.

The psychic then jumped a bit when Penumbra grabbed his wrist. The striped hedgehog then gripped one of Blaze's as well. Nummy peered at the two of them before pulling the duo in the direction of the large group. "Meet friends!"

Blaze fought the urge to yank herself out of the other's hold. "Nice to know that he's still touchy in this present…"

Surprised gazes stared at them as they got closer; however, one stare belonging to a particular bee was the most awe-struck as he locked onto Blaze. They didn't know what to make of that.

Once they were part of the loose circle, Penumbra let the pair go and had an expectant expression on his face. Silver did the first thing that came to mind. He lifted his hand in a weak wave. "Hi?"

"Silver?" The Amy without Silver's limp double stepped closer to them, brow furrowed. "And Blaze! What…What are you two doing back here?"

"BLAZE!" One of the Charmys squealed in excitement. "I knew that you looked familiar! You look _just_ like her!" The insect buzzed right in front of the purple cat's face, grinning broadly. "This is so _cool!_ I wonder if you like me scratching the same spot she did!"

"Excuse me?" Blaze questioned, appalled. The bee started to reach for one of her ears, and she caught the kid's wrist. "Whatever you're about to do, don't," she recommended, letting go.

Charmy puffed his cheeks, crossing his arms. "You're not as fun as she was…"

Silver was looking at the child like he'd lost his mind. Maybe he had. Maybe they all have. "Who are you talking about…?"

"My kitty Blaze!" The bee's voice wavered a bit. "Who we left behind in our world…"

Before the feline and psychic could wrap their minds around _all_ of what Charmy said, a voice suddenly yelled out, startling them.

"They're going to die!" They whipped their heads in the direction of the sound, watching as the slumped over white hedgehog shot straight up out of one of the pinkette's arms. The long-quilled hedgie – who sounded _just like_ Silver – pulled on his own ears. "E-Espio's not going to let them live! Especially Shadow! Oh _Chaos_! What are we going to do, what are we going to do, _what are we going to do?!_ "

"Silv, bro!" The male bat – who the newest duo realized greatly resembled the robot they were lucky enough not to fight in the future – called out to the panicking hedgehog. Apparently, he was named Silver as well. The observing Silver resisted the strong urge to pinch himself. The bat grabbed the other Silver's shoulder. "Hey, calm down!" Curious teal orbs drifted over to the hog/cat pair for a split second. "You're givin' off a bad first impression man!"

The wired Mobian's gaze now held heat. "Calm down? How can you possibly be calm when – Hey wait." His voice had lowered to a quieter volume, any signs of ire gone. "First impression? Rogue, what in the heck are you talking about?" The bat named Rogue pointed, and he followed the winged-one's finger. Golden irises widened. "Oh."

Silver and Blaze both nearly took a step back when the other ran over to them, beaming. "Oh my gosh!" he gushed, focusing on Silver. "You're…You're my double! My twin! You know, I _never_ thought that I'd ever meet you because Shadow said you had come from the future and…" Silver's doppelganger then gasped, and Silver tensed when his arms were palmed. "You're a time traveler! That means…That means that you…gah…"

The twin backed away, face scrunched up as he rubbed his temples. "Stupid headache's back…" The more expressive white hedgehog then shifted gears, his attention planted on Blaze. "And you're like dream come true." His energy level was way down now. "Talking to you will be like having _actual_ conversations with my little kitten." He groaned in pain, squeezing his eyes shut. "Stupid explosion…"

Silver's double promptly peered over his shoulder at one of the Charmys. "Where is Blaze anyway, Charmy?"

The addressed swallowed audibly. "Um…actually Silver, we – _mmff!_ "

A Knuckles muffled the bee with his glove, looking exasperated. "She's being kept safe right now, Silver. Don't worry about her."

The white hedgehog seemed relieved. "Okay good," he breathed out.

Blaze believed that this was the time to be enlightened about what _exactly_ was going on around here. "Can someone _please_ explain what any of this is?" she commanded, voice forbidding any other conversations.

"Yeah it looks kinda crazy, doesn't it? Well, first off, _I'm_ the Amy that you two know." Amy gestured to herself before pointing over to her double. "She's named Amy too, but we call her Rosy so we won't get confused. She and her friends are from a different dimension!"

 _A different…dimension?_ Blaze thought, bewildered. _They definitely didn't come from mine…_ She then glanced over to the Sonic they had met before. _So he and I have something in common…_

"Whoa really?" Silver scanned the doubles again before settling on his own twin. _He had to have been on some kind of medication while there._ The psychic then sobered up, thinking of the future. "So…the other Espio that's evil came from your dimension too, right?"

"Yeah." Rosy looked at them before shifting her gaze to the ground. "Yeah, he did…"

"And unfortunately…" The time travelers glimpsed in the direction of who was talking, taking in the sight of a one-eyed Espio. Silver nearly forgot to breathe. _What…What happened?_ "He's a force to be reckoned with. He has Metal Sonic and Eggman on his side, and things haven't…been going well."

The psychic gravitated towards the ninja, unable to take his eyes off of the other's covered injury. "Espio, what… Who did that to you?!" Then common sense shone through, and his jaw clenched. "It was the other you, wasn't it?"

The purple reptile was silent for a moment before exhaling softly. "It was a misunderstanding."

That wasn't the answer that Silver was expecting. "A misunderstanding? What do you-"

"That's not important right now, Silver," Espio said, not letting him finish his question.

Blaze rose a brow when she saw a couple of eyes flicker over to Rogue, said bat subtly rubbing his arm. Not all of the gazes were neutral. The ones belonging to a specific crocodile and echidna were nowhere near friendly. She'd crack that case later. She continued listening to the chameleon's words.

"What is important is that I should be asking you and Blaze the same question." A single amber orb shifted down to the cuts on the psychic's body.

Silver gingerly touched one of them. "Right…" He then turned to the quiet cat. "I guess that it's time to fill them in."

Blaze nodded, believing so as well now that her curiosity about the doubles were satiated. She projected her voice so that all could hear. "A little while ago, we arrived from the future."

There were shocked gasps from what she guessed were the foreigners, while the Mobians she knew shifted uneasily. "So if you two are back here, that means that something isn't right." Knuckles stated, waiting for either of them to confirm it.

"That's putting it lightly." Blaze's tail twitched as she carefully folded her arms across her chest. "Try to not interrupt me, because we all know that Sonic and Shadow are gone, and we need to rescue them as soon as possible." There were agreeing nods, and she began her and Silver's grave tale.

A handful of minutes later, the clearing was dead silent.

Half of its occupants were focused on an oblivious Penumbra, a multitude of eyes foggy and moist. The other half were staring at Silver and Blaze, looking like they wanted them to take it all back. To say that it was a horrible, sick joke. It was anything but.

"…So that's what we're up against? _Indestructible_ robots?!" One crocodile blurted out while the other stressfully rubbed his forehead.

"It makes sense then…" A Tails breathily spoke, tearing his focus off of Penumbra. "If you two hadn't come, then we would've just charged in there and…"

The other dimensional red echidna lifted his chin to the sky and let out a long winded sigh. "It sucks that we don't know what…Rabbit and Bat can do. This mission just became way more troublesome."

Silver's twin hadn't stopped staring at Penumbra. Then he muttered something under his breath that Silver had barely caught. "Of _course_ he'd work for them…"

 _What in the heck does he mean by that?_

The psychic was thrown out of his thoughts when a Cream ran over and gingerly hugged Blaze, crying into her dress. "S-Seeing that had to b-be horrible, M-Miss Blaze! P-Poor M-Mr. Penumbra!"

"It was…" The purple feline softened her expression, wrapping a comforting arm around the bunny. "It's all the reason to prevent all of that from happening."

Rouge tapped her foot on the ground, seeming both solemn and somewhat frustrated. "Hm…so I'm guessing that our previous plan's being tossed in the disposal?"

"What in the hell was it anyway?" Boom laid his emerald orbs on her. "Probably somethin' shitty."

"It doesn't matter what it was, Blue." Rogue frantically gestured over to Penumbra. "The better question is that _why_ is no one else freaking out that P-man was living _two hundred_ years in the future?"

"Yeah…" A Charmy sniffed, rubbing his nose. "Th-That is weird!"

"We can talk about all of that _after_ we come up with another plan-"

"And give the other Silver a nickname."

"-that keeps us aliv – Hold up. What, Tails?"

Said kit tried to smile at Knuckles, but it came out shaky. "We can't call them both Silver, right?" He glanced over to Silver's double. "How about…Grey?"

"Hey! Why do _I_ have to be the one nicknamed? And that sounds so _bland!_ "

"If you don't shut up in _two seconds_ , my foot is going to find a way up your _ass_." Sonic threatened, and Silver figured that it was going to take a while to get used to that.

Grey glared at the azure 'hog. "Jerk," he muttered, but didn't object any further.

"As I was saying," Knuckles grunted, "We need another plan that won't get us all killed."

The blue speedster rolled his eyes. "Isn't it freaking obvious? Those fuckers have the Master Emerald's energy inside 'em. The cat said something about the bots being anal about them touching the damn thing. So you and Dreads need to go in there and shut the rock down."

"…Then the energy can't be used!" Tails nodded enthusiastically. "That's a good plan!"

The azure one pointedly looked away from him. "Tch. Like I said, it was obvious."

"There's a thing wrong with it though," the other Knuckles drawled out, "How are we going to do that without running into anyone? We won't know exactly where it is, and they know we're coming."

Silence, then-

Espio cleared his throat. "I have an idea."

* * *

His regaining consciousness was instant.

Ruby orbs snapped open once his brain registered that he was laying flush against a cold, hard floor. Shadow was immediately hyperaware of his surroundings. His world was tilted sideways, but it was easy enough to conclude that he currently was in Aquatic base. He was in a very familiar room filled with floating balls, one of which was a couple of inches in front of his face.

Shadow stared at his warped reflection for a moment, noticing how ruffled his quills were. He scowled before attempting to use his arms to push himself into a sitting position. However, his limbs refused to move from behind his back, locked together with cuffs.

If mental alarms hadn't been going off, they sure were now.

The striped hedgehog groaned as he used his sore core muscles to right himself, the effects of the static electricity choosing to linger. Shadow growled at the memory of that robotic rabbit, cursing how _easily_ he had been defeated. He shouldn't have assumed that the damn bat was the only attack she had.

Shadow glared down at his legs, them bound together at the ankles. Because of his assumption, he was now chained up _without_ the Chaos emerald he had. It was gone, along with its energy. The stone was half-powered, yes, but dammit, he could've _been_ out of this place if he had it.

A glower marred his muzzle as he peered over his shoulder. That wall behind him would be enough to help him get back up on his feet. Metal clanging, Shadow slid backwards until his back was pressed against the metallic surface. Pulling his feet close to his body, he grunted as he pushed upwards. Slowly but surely, he gained height inch by inch until he was standing all the way up.

The Ultimate Lifeform then turned his attention to the two exits of the room, one to his right, and one to his left. Unfortunately, he had no clue which way would lead to the entrance of the base. The whole place was an underwater maze, and-

Shadow gritted his teeth when a thought made him pause. If he was captured, then what happened to Sonic? The Faker had to have lost as well, because if his rival had won, he would have woken up either in that crater or back with the group.

"Shit," the dark hedgie spat. If Shadow was alone, then who knew what the hell they were doing to Sonic…

Black-furred ears perked when metal doors slid open, and he spun his head over to his left. His spines instantly bristled at the sight of Rabbit. He bared his teeth and glared as hard as he could muster. She would be the first robot that he would destroy.

Artificial red opticals swiveled in his direction, and the baseball bat that was hanging at her side was now propped up on her shoulder. "Oh look. You're awake. It's about time."

"Why would _you_ care?" Shadow snarled, wishing that his gaze alone was enough to melt her down. He then absently realized that she wasn't allowing the M.E. energy to flow within her, blocking him. That only made him angrier. "Let me guess, that _chameleon_ sent you to kill me?"

"You know, intimidation doesn't work when I know that you can't do anything," Rabbit flippantly stated, "But anyway, you're wrong on both accounts. No, he didn't send me to kill you, and no, he didn't send _just_ me."

 _Of course,_ Shadow nastily thought, fully believing that Metal Sonic would show his ugly face as well. However, that wasn't what happened.

"Th-This room looks awesome!" A slightly stuttering voice shouted out before something zoomed over Rabbit's head and into the room. Ruby orbs tracked the newcomer as it landed by a floating clump of balls. It was a robot like Rabbit, and it looked exactly like Rouge – or better yet, Rogue. The winged mech threw a ball into the air and watched in fascination as it leisurely sunk back down. "Y-Yeah, science!"

"You can play with them all you want, Bat." Rabbit strolled towards the center, and the sliding door closed behind her. Shadow couldn't help but to think that Bat wasn't that much of a threat, the bot being way more interested in the hovering spheres than him. But he ousted that train of thought. Underestimating was dangerous. The bunny's half-lidded eyes then left her partner, landing on Shadow. "Just remember what your target is."

Once the ball had landed in the male mech's hands, he swiveled both red eyes and large ears in Shadow's direction. The Ultimate Lifeform's frame was stiff as Bat turned his attention to him. The striped hedgie scowled, but it seemed like the other wasn't intimidated either. In fact, the robot looked put off.

"W-What's with the chains on his feet, Rabbit?" Bat cocked his head at her. "H-He won't be able to move."

Rabbit didn't look at him. "That's the point."

"W-We don't even give him a chance?" Bat spun the ball on a single finger, gazing back over to Shadow, who was thinking that this robot might be impressionable enough to let him free. With the right amount of convincing – and getting Rabbit to leave – he could be let go. "I-I mean sure, you want to win games, but they're no fun if it's _too_ easy. J-Just let me break the chain on his legs."

The robotic bunny pointed her sporty weapon at her partner. "You break the chain, I break you. If the hedgehog's legs are free, he'd be able to escape the room in less than a second. Also, he's tried to kill Master multiple times; this is his punishment. So if you don't want to become a home run, do as you're told." She returned the baseball bat to her shoulder. "Don't think about it as dodgeball. Think of it as…bowling or something."

Bat's eyes flashed before he let out a little laugh. "U-Understood. A-And I know to never get on your bad side." He palmed the ball before focusing on the dark Mobian. Shadow clenched his fists when Bat aimed at him. "T-This is still dodgeball. S-Sounds more fun, and well…you're _still_ going to dodge, right hedgehog?" Said Mobian's only response was a growl, and Bat asked Rabbit, "…C-Can he talk?"

"He can," the bunny drawled out, "He's just being stubborn. And a sore loser."

Shadow was definitely going to destroy her first. "Where's Espio?" he snarled, bristling his quills even more. "Is he too _busy_ to come see me?"

"Actually, yes." The striped hedgehog nearly jumped out of his skin when Rabbit suddenly swung at a nearby ball, embedding it in the wall a couple of inches away from Shadow's face. Startled rubies snapped to the half-visible object before refocusing on Rabbit, who was tossing her bat up and down. "He's overseeing construction while Metal Sonic is paying your friend a visit."

At those words, Shadow tensed up more than he already had been. His thoughts were confirmed. The Faker was here, and Metal Sonic was with him. The robot whose sole purpose was to _kill Sonic_ was in the same room with the most likely injured and cuffed speedster right now.

Sonic could be dying at this very moment.

 _Dammit! Just…dammit…_

At the ghost of a smirk on Rabbit's metallic face, Shadow harshly pulled at his cuffs only to not get the results he desperately needed. If the bunny noticed, she didn't comment on it. "I wish that I could hit a homerun with you like I did with him, but Master said that we couldn't kill you. So, I'll have to settle for…" She paused to think. "…First base. Second base might be a bit too much."

Bat marginally lowered his readied ball. "I-I know you're making actual baseball references, but out of context, that sounds kinda like-"

"I'm based off of a six-year-old bunny, Bat. Shut up." She raised her sporty tool, and Shadow knew that pain was in his near future. There was no way that he would be able to dodge all of the metal spheres. "Let's just start this game. You're up to bat first."

"A-Alright!" The winged mech grinned before shortly tossing the ball up into the air. The Ultimate Lifeform subtly bent his knees, ready to move at any second. Once the sphere came back down to a certain height, Bat roundhouse kicked the ball, it careening in Shadow's direction.

Relying on his quick reflexes, he swiftly hopped to the side to barely avoid being struck right in the abdomen. Shadow was slightly wobbly when he landed, but he was balanced enough to promptly duck, a ball whirling over his head.

Shadow then jumped high in the air to be over the sphere aimed at his calves, spinning while he was up to put as much distance he could between another ball and his shoulder. He glared once he was grounded again, baring his teeth. They would have to try harder if they were going to 'punish' him.

"Four strikes…" Rabbit muttered, leaning on her weapon.

"W-We're super out, right? Hm…" Bat seemed to be thinking, and Shadow was suddenly on edge. There was always more than what met the eye. Rabbit and her electricity, for example. When the male robot rose his arm, his fingers folded to resemble a gun. It looked downright silly, but Shadow couldn't take any chances. "Ch-Check this out."

Bat's hand jerked up like a gun recoiling from a shot, but nothing happened at first. Ruby orbs were narrowed, their owner confused to what was happening. Then, not two seconds later, a strong gust of wind hit Shadow right in his eyes, making him cry out in surprise. They instinctively closed, and he automatically knew that he'd made a mistake.

His body doubled over when sharp pain blossomed from his stomach, eyes wide open now that he was flying back from the impact. He landed hard on his back. He instantly rolled over, letting the ball roll away from him and eventually find its way back into the air. Shadow wasn't paying attention to it anymore. He was on his knees, coughing up blood. Rabbit must have hit that ball.

The striped hedgehog then shouted out in agony when a sphere smashed him in the side of his head, snapping it to the side. His world was tilted on its axis, his right temple throbbing painfully. He ground his teeth together, wondering how in the hell he was going to get out of this.

Shadow was suddenly forced flush against the floor when a ball hit him square in the back, smacking his nose on the ground. He hissed when liquid dripped from it, staining the metal below. Unfortunately for him, the onslaught wasn't over yet.

He gasped when something cold and hard wrapped around his two legs, vigorously pulling him. He fully realized that Rabbit had captured him with one of her ears, but he didn't focus on that for long since he was suddenly thrown high into the air.

Shadow swallowed thickly, about to right himself so he could _attempt_ to land on his feet. However, that plan was tossed out of the window when Bat flew up to his elevation, his hands empty. He grinned before grabbing his arm and spinning him midair. Shadow's gut dropped as the room turned into a blur, on the verge of becoming dizzy. He lost all of his bearings as he fell, right up to the point when his spine bent around the ball that had been strategically placed under him before he crashed to the ground.

If Shadow had been frailer, his bones would have snapped. Easily.

To add insult to injury, Rabbit simply hurled her ball into Shadow's exposed face, neglecting to use her bat.

He coughed up more blood as he rolled off the sphere, the red from his horribly split lip and broken nose mixing in with his internal fluids.

He didn't get any time to regather himself, for he was tossed again, a baseball bat striking a second afterwards in his side. Shadow was launched through the air, unable to control _anything_ , until he crashed into a cylinder structure, painfully sinking to the ground.

However, before he could focus on how much trouble he was in, a vaguely familiar sound made his ears twitch. It was like a strange hum that he _swore_ he'd heard before. Struggling to sit up, he peered over his shoulder only to find that he'd smacked into a magnetized rod. And it just had been turned on.

Without wasting another second, Shadow hastily rolled to put as much distance as possible between him and the now glowing cylinder. If he had stayed in the vicinity, then he'd surely be pelted with more balls than the robots had thrown at him.

His cheeks painfully throbbed as they swelled, but the Ultimate Lifeform chose to put that low on his priority list because the balls were flying towards the rod, and…the mechs were too.

"W-What?!" Bat fought the pull, flying in the opposite direction, but it was too much. The crash echoed in the room, the winged robot stuck to the cylinder, immobile. "W-Well this is happening…"

There was a second loud clank, and Rabbit had joined him. "Just our luck. He gets to walk."

And Shadow fully understood that. Knowing that this was probably his only chance at freedom, he hastily slid over to the nearest wall and shakily got back onto his feet. The magnetic pull was affecting his cuffs as well, but they were nowhere big enough to severely hinder his movements.

He didn't care how foolish he might have looked desperately hopping over to the nearest exit. He was going to escape that hell of a room and find a safe place to recover before they found a way to disable the magnet.

The striped hedgie could have celebrated once he got the set of doors to glide open, but he kept any excitement down. Metal Sonic, Eggman, and Espio were still about. Yes, this lab was insanely large, but-

Shadow gasped when he collapsed, hit with an unexpected bout of nausea, him becoming too dizzy to stay on his feet. Laying on his stomach, he tried to move, but he couldn't. His world was dangerously spinning, and his stomach was doing flips because of it.

 _Why is this happening? Why…_ Shadow struggled to keep his fluids down, but with the way everything was violently rotating, he couldn't win that fight. He threw up right where he was, his stomach contents spilling all over the floor. _Have I been…poisoned?_ Another round forced its way up, and he strained to keep his head out of the mess. It was already too late for his chest fur.

The dark Mobian turned his head to peer over his shoulder, his surroundings rocking like he was on an unsteady boat. That was so, but he could vaguely make out Bat staring right at him, both of his large ears pointed in his direction. And was…was the air by them…vibrating?

The answer slammed into Shadow like a truck. Bat's ears were speakers. They were letting out sounds that he couldn't hear, but the vibrations were enough to knock his inner ears off-kilter. They controlled his balance, and Bat was keeping them from doing so.

"D-Don't hate on these good vibrations, hedgehog," Bat said to him, "I-If we let you go, then he's gonna be mad. A-And I _really_ don't want to be dismantled." Those speakers were no longer trained on Shadow. "Th-That should be good enough."

"Damn you…" Shadow almost gaged again as he faced back forward, the dizziness unfortunately lingering. Then, again, the next thing that happened was abrupt and unanticipated. Shadow's head was smashed down into his own vomit, a bruised cheek wallowing in the sick. There was something pushing down on the right side of his face, keeping him from holding it up.

"How dare you speak to my little helpers that way?" That slithery voice made Shadow's blood boil instantly. When a purple chameleon faded into view, the striped hedgie violently struggled against the foot pushing him down. He didn't care if he was hurting, dizzy, and tied up. He was going to kill that reptile if it was the last thing he ever did.

He kept his wince subtle when Espio increased the pressure while squatting down, coming close to the Ultimate Lifeform's face. "Nice try, Shadow, but do you really think you'd be able to do anything in your condition?" Shadow ceased squirming, but the glare he was sending the other had the heat of a thousand suns. Espio just rolled his amber eye, it glinting with malicious content. "What's with that look? You should be grateful that I haven't killed you. Yet."

"You should have, because I'm going to rip you _limb from limb_ , chameleon. Mark my words," Shadow threatened. No, that wasn't a threat. That was a _promise._

An irritating smirk grew on the scaled one's face. "Then I guess it's bitter-sweet that you didn't die in that explosion. You're still here with your threats that you will never get to accomplish; however, I get to kill you now in any way I choose. In front of any _audience_ I choose. I'm sure the remainder of your friends who are coming here would _love_ to see the life drain out of your eyes. Or maybe vice versa. I could kill you last and let you suffer."

"Go to _hell!_ " he shouted, practically vibrating with rage. If only he had a Chaos emerald, if only those robots let their energy circulate, if only he wasn't so far away from the Master Emerald…!

The twisted grin grew. "Well isn't this a little bit of déjà vu? I remember you telling me the exact same thing in that prison. And it looks like you're in the same position as back then too, am I wrong? Basically powerless, trapped… The only thing missing is that serum in your veins. Be lucky that I can't get my hands on any more of that."

By the time Espio had stopped talking, Shadow had mixed saliva, bile, and blood together in his mouth. He spat the glob in the other's only working eye, sneering when the reptile flinched and gasped. "I can see the parallels now." Shadow's tone was dripping with poison.

Once the spittle had been wiped away, Espio glowered at him before lifting his foot off the hedgehog's head. He then not-so-gently kicked Shadow in his side, the mammal producing a pained hiss. "I think it's time to visit your speedy partner." Now his voice had little inflection to it. Monotone. "Metal Sonic's been done with him, and I have to say, he was real clever to pay tribute to your little Mephiles."

 _Pay tribute to… No. No!_ Shadow attempted to growl, but the effect of it was lost with the glint of concern present in his sharp rubies. "I swear to _Chaos_ if you had killed-"

"What are you going to do?" Espio asked rhetorically. He humorlessly chuckled. "But don't worry, I don't plan to kill him off just yet. If he was the other one, then yes, I would have. But, he has to learn about butting into other peoples' business. It was hard to convince Metal though, that determined machine." The chameleon subtly shook his head before moving down to Shadow's feet. The striped one made tight fists when the chameleon lifted his legs by the chain. "You struggle again, and this goes right through your skull."

Shadow glanced back to see a kunai twirling around the reptile's pointer finger. He then remembered that weapon cracking his skull. He wisely stayed still. He wouldn't be able to kill Espio if he died before he got the chance to.

"Good boy." Espio's condescending tone was killing him on the inside. "Now let's-"

"Master?" Rabbit called out from inside the room, them still stuck in the same position against the pillar. "What about us?"

Espio peered over his shoulder, his expression morphing into a slightly irritated one. "Now how did you two manage-"

"I-It was Rabbit's fault!" Bat interrupted him before adding on a, "S-Sir."

The purple chameleon narrowed his eye before tisking. "I'll be back for you two after I drop him off." Shadow scrunched up his nose at the smell of his throw up as he was dragged through it, thinking that maybe he'd destroy Bat first instead of Rabbit. He was now facing said mechs as he slid across the metallic floor. "Stick around until I return."

"That was a horrible joke, I hope you know that," Rabbit deadpanned before the doors closed on them.

Shadow heard Espio hum to himself as he was dragged along. The striped hedgehog was forced to listen to whatever damned tune it was as he was degradingly led throughout a couple rooms and passageways. None of which contained the Master Emerald, or the Chaos emeralds that the chameleon had to have in his possession.

About ten minutes later, the reptile believed it was time to spark a conversation. "So what do you think of them?" Shadow refused to respond, glaring hard at the swimming dolphins behind a large pane of glass like all of this were their faults. "Giving me the cold shoulder? So childish. I expected more out of you, Shadow."

The dark Mobian gritted his teeth so hard that he was surprised that they hadn't shattered yet.

"But anyway, they are pretty strong, aren't they? I couldn't have been more proud of Rabbit when she brought in both Sonic _and_ you. My future will be a bright one. Especially now that Bat's up and running, and that two more are on the way."

That made Shadow's heart skip a beat. He turned his attention to the one gripping him. "Two _more?_ "

Espio threw a smirk over his shoulder. "Yes, Psy and Boar. Those two will make _great_ additions, since they are based off of Silver and Penumbra." The striped 'hog didn't know how to respond to that information. And he thought those two stuck to that magnet were bad… "Speaking of them, and your friends in general… I'm curious. Did anyone actually die in that explosion?"

Shadow whipped his head back forward and remained silent.

"Well, I'm going to assume that no one did. And I'm also going to assume that you're not going to tell me how that came to be."

"Shut the hell up," Shadow bit, "Just take me where you're going to take me. I'm _tired_ of your Chaos-damned voice."

"You know that it doesn't work that way, Shadow," Espio said as they turned a corner, "One, you're being very rude, and two, do you really think that I'd listen to you? The thorn in my side since the very beginning?" He then snickered. "Well, I guess you'll get your wish. We've reached your room."

The chameleon suddenly let go of his feet, and they smacked against the hard floor. Cursing like a sailor in his mind, Shadow had just managed to roll around and sit up when Espio grabbed his handcuffs and roughly helped him up to his feet.

Espio ignored him when Shadow glowered in warning. The chameleon seemed too content with himself to care. "I was sure to modify this particular door so it's _only_ voice activated. Just in case. Open," he told the door, and it swiftly did so, revealing a small space that was barely bigger than a closet. It was empty except for two things. A light in the ceiling…

…and Sonic staring right back at them.

Shadow couldn't help but to gasp at the condition of the speedster. The azure Mobian was sitting on the ground with his back against a wall, chained up like how Shadow was. However, that ended the comparison between the two. While the Ultimate Lifeform only had moderate bruising and a little bit of blood on him, Sonic was _covered_ in nasty purple splotches from his black eye to the bruising on his calves. There were cuts littered all over him too, a good bit of them still dripping blood. One of his legs were broken as well, bent at an unnatural angle.

All of those were horrible injuries, but Shadow couldn't tear his eyes away from the very stained cloth wrapped around Sonic's neck. It was clear that article had been white before, but red had taken over.

Shocked rubies eventually did drift up however to meet those emerald eyes. Those exhausted, jaded, angry, and wary emerald eyes.

"Ah…don't you love the sound of silence?" Espio sighed from beside him. "If you don't, well, you sure will learn to, won't you Sonic?"

It seemed like the speedster barely had the strength to glare.

"What in the hell do you mean by that?" Shadow snarled at the chameleon, lost. However, it only took one arrogant smirk from the reptile to get him to understand.

 _A tribute to Mephiles… Sonic can't talk._

Espio must've seen the comprehension on his face, because he asked, "It was very nice of Metal, wasn't it?" Before Shadow could attempt to somehow rip the other's head off of his shoulders, he was shoved into the small room. The striped hedgehog tripped over his chained feet and landed hard on Sonic.

Shadow quickly moved off of him at the sharp intake of breath he heard. He put as much room between himself and the hero as he could, seeing how Sonic's features were now twisted up in pain.

"Now, all we need is for your buddies to show up so the real fun can begin." Rage pulsated from Shadow's system when Espio waved. "Close."

The door shut them in, and it was quiet.

Shadow struggled to calm himself as he looked over at his rival. Sonic was blankly staring back at him, his dull green orbs swirling with many emotions. He then started coughing, leaning forward as he did so, and Shadow just observed helplessly as blood dripped out of Sonic's mouth and down his chin. He was in terrible condition. Shadow had been lucky.

Once his fit was over, the azure Mobian squeezed his eyes shut and leaned his head backward, it thudding softly against the wall. He was panting, and his fingers were tightly clenched behind his back.

"Faker…" Shadow had to say _something_. When the other's weary gaze met his again, he continued, "We _will_ get out of here, and you will get your voice back. I'll get my hands on some kind of emerald after the others come and get us, and…"

He trailed off when guilt and worry crossed the blue one's face, and it made the striped hedgie understand that the hero was more concerned about everyone else over himself.

"They'll be _fine_ , Sonic." Shadow's tone was intense.

Sonic didn't respond at first, but eventually he gave a slow nod. However, it was easy to tell that he still was unsure.

Shadow couldn't blame him. He was having trouble convincing himself too.

* * *

 **Next chapter…espionage!**


	37. Chapter 37

**Disclaimer- Should be common knowledge by this point. Nothing is mine, well…Boar, Psy, Bat, and Rabbit are mine…I think. Don't quote me on that.**

 **Chapter 37- Fight fire with fire**

The moment those doors closed behind him, Espio knew that if he made a single mistake, he was going to die.

He wasn't overreacting or blowing anything out of proportion. He had barely won the fight against his corrupted self. He didn't have a chance against those robots Silver and Blaze had warned them about. All he would be able to do was flee. Yes, he could turn invisible, but he was sure that escaping even with his ability would not be an easy thing.

Also, if he got found out – especially before he could relay the necessary information – their plan would be ruined, and lives would be in more danger than they already were.

He had to stay calm. He couldn't let the pressure get to him. He was a ninja. Stealth was his specialty.

The purple chameleon breathed deeply to steady his nerves as he scanned his immediate surroundings: a futuristic narrow passageway that was gently sloping downwards. Blue neon lights illuminated the space like a runway, leading him farther down into the base.

He was seemingly alone – for now. Espio increased his grip on the communicator in his palm before rising it to his mouth, pressing a button on its side. "I'm in," he whispered lowly into the radio, "Can you detect me?"

" _Roger that. Operation Stealth is a go,"_ a young voice answered just as quietly, _"And yes, as long as we have a connection, I can pick up your location_. _Be careful, Espio."_

"Same to you, Tails," the chameleon briefly responded, lowering the device after doing so. He stashed the communicator in his left glove before focusing his mind, and letting his body disappear. Espio checked himself thoroughly to make sure that there weren't any faults in his camouflage.

Once he was satisfied, Espio charged forward, footsteps light and practically unnoticeable.

 _I have three objectives to complete: locate the Master Emerald, locate Shadow and Sonic, and glean as much information as possible in any order. The level of difficulty is…severely dependent on if I get caught._

The ninja ran silently until he came across more doors, decreasing his speed to a stop just enough distance away to not cause the metal to slide open on their own. Espio eyed the closed threshold, sensing a dilemma here. There was no way he'd be able to know what – or _who_ – was on the other side of the doors. If he would trigger the motion sensor, then there was a possibility that someone else would witness the doors opening by themselves, which could raise suspicion. But then again, this base had been abandoned for a while. Perhaps they would blame faulty wiring…

Espio would boldly admit it. There was – had been – someone else who could do this better than he could. However, at this point, he was the only one who could do it.

And be the person to complete step one in avenging that poor soul.

The purple reptile strained to listen for any sounds created by something or someone he couldn't see, but he couldn't make anything out. It was quiet. Having no other option but to push forward, Espio did so, the metallic doors not revealing any unwanted surprises. Instead, they simply uncovered the next section, which was a large room with multiple levels.

Espio scanned the wide space as he stepped through the doorway, searching for any movement as well as analyzing his potential path. Fortunately, he was alone. Unfortunately, there were many directions he could choose from that would lead him away from his objectives.

The ninja was currently on the second level, standing on a ledge that protruded out of the wall lining the room so one wouldn't plummet down to the floor the second they cleared the sliding doors. There were four other exits to the room just on the top half of the area.

The ground half had four more temporarily blocked passageways, reached by a curved ramp that connected the second and first levels. The material looked different from the metal surrounding it; the convenient incline could have been recently installed.

A single amber iris switched back and forth between the doors at his eye level and the doors that were below him. The first thought that breached the surface of his working mind was that where Sonic and Shadow were being kept had to be in the complete opposite direction of where the Master Emerald was being stored. His two targets were most likely held at the two ends of the base just because of Shadow's power.

So building off of that, he assumed that the Mobians were either trapped in the upper level of the underwater structure, or that they were confined somewhere on the deepest floor. He pondered this for a moment, believing that all of this came down to what his corrupted double thought was more important. With what Espio had learned about his twin's futuristic feats, he would say that the Master Emerald must hold a higher place on the priority list than Sonic and Shadow.

The Master Emerald was on the bottommost level of the base, and his friends were at the same depth he was currently standing. At least, Espio hoped so.

With that thought bouncing around in his brain, the horned reptile bypassed the ramp leading downward and swiftly strode to pair of doors adjacent to the ones he had just came from. The solid barriers glided apart with a soft swish, and he was greeted with another empty hallway. However, unlike the one that brought him into the body of the base, this passage was lined with glass.

Blue-tinted light filtered through the window, shifting with the waves up above. Different species of fish swam near the clear material without a care. Blissfully unaware to the dangers lurking within the unnatural metal edifice placed in the middle of their environment.

Espio barely spared a glance at the marine ecosystem as he lightly treaded down the hall, hyperaware of everything around him. He couldn't be distracted here. Even though the base was huge from what he was told, the situation of running into his double (who understandably could be as perceptive as he was) could happen in an instant.

The ninja promptly froze when the doors he was heading towards briskly opened, three figures striding through the threshold. The one in the middle of the trio was a Mobian Espio knew all too well; however, his two accomplices were less familiar. Although, the visual of them matched the mental image he had conjured up after Blaze had enlightened them all of their possibly bleak future.

Espio's twin was currently being flanked by Bat and Rabbit.

Holding his breath, the ninja carefully darted to his right to move out of the path of the small group, pressing his back against the glass. He wasn't sure if his footsteps were absolutely silent, but it didn't seem to matter because the trio were engrossed in their own not-so-quiet conversation.

"T-To be clear, you're _not_ going to dismantle us, right?" the winged robot questioned, worry noticeable in his tone.

The evil reptile rolled his working eye, and Espio frowned as he subtly rubbed the bandages covering his own injury. He hated sharing so many similarities with his deceitful double, but…it couldn't be helped. "You've asked that four times already, Bat. Do you _want_ to be torn apart?"

Bat waved his hands in a negative. "N-No! I-It's just that-"

"The whole thing was an accident." Rabbit was examining what looked like a blood stain on her sporty weapon. The invisible ninja immediately focused on that, mentally questioning whose blood that was and how much they had lost. "I didn't know that thing was a magnet, you didn't know, and I'm sure he had no idea too."

The camouflaged reptile refused to move a muscle when the trio finally passed him, and he resisted the urge to let out a relieved sigh when they didn't detect anything off.

"Right. I didn't." The villain crossed his arms over his chest. "And it doesn't matter that Shadow almost escaped, because he _didn't_. So, if you ask me that again Bat, destroying you would be a fun activity."

"R-Read you loud and clear!" Bat quietly chuckled as they increased the distance between them and Espio. Eventually, they had disappeared behind the automatic doors. Espio didn't dare relax until a good minute had gone by, being positively sure that none of them mysteriously had the desire to turn back around.

After internally counting down to one, the purple chameleon peeled himself off of the window, gazing the way the group had come from. The blood on the metallic bunny's bat seemed fresh, so whatever they did was recent.

From their words, he deduced that Shadow was around here somewhere. He wasn't sure about Sonic though, and a bit of concern bubbled up in his stomach before he smothered it. Just because they didn't mention Sonic didn't mean that he wasn't with Shadow, or that something…more permanent had happened to him.

Steeling himself for what was to come, Espio – still see-through – continued his trek, confident that he would reunite with at least one of them soon.

Leaving out of the aquarium-esque passageway, Espio was met with a medium sized room with three doorways: one to his left, one to his right, and one straight ahead. There was no way to figure out which way his sinister self had come from, so he went with his gut and continued straight. This had to be the shortest path to where his friends were located; if not, why would the trio choose the way Espio had entered to leave? Veering left or right would surely end him up closer to one of the other hallways that massive room had split into.

Espio crept along cautiously through the structure. Even though his twin, Bat, and Rabbit were behind him, it didn't mean that Eggman or Metal Sonic couldn't be around here as well, lurking.

However, after guessing on a few more twists and turns, he was less worried about getting caught and more worried about not finding their missing Mobians. Approaching another pair of sliding doors, he mentally told himself that he would turn around and try a different direction if _any_ variation of a hint was not revealed to him in the next thirty seconds. Yes, it was true that he wasn't exactly timed, but the faster he got this done, the faster the rest of the plan could commence.

When those metal slabs opened up for him, he paused in his step to absorb what he was seeing.

It was a room with two exits, one on the opposite wall, and one that Espio was standing in. There were a multitude of floating balls next to a dully lighted rod. There had to be some kind of magnetism going on there. That was interesting and all, but what really pulled Espio's attention was the blood stains in the middle of the floor.

The ninja jogged over to the biggest one and crouched low, eying the red fluid. It seemed mostly wet and – again – recent. Believing that he was finally getting somewhere, Espio straightened back up and scanned for any more clues. There was none from what he could see, but the blood was enough to have him commit to his directional choice.

The chameleon spared one more look at the floating metal spheres, paring that image with the bloody bat Rabbit had in her hands. Whatever experience Shadow had gone through was definitely not a pleasant one.

Hating his double more now, Espio resumed his near silent adventure with his jaw clenched. Fortunately, he was trained to be keenly observant. If he hadn't been, he would've dunked his foot into a large puddle of vomit. His lips twitched downwards at the foul smell, but instead of backing away from the sick, he peered closer at it, noticing how there were lines of the liquid leading away from the original puddle. Someone had to have been dragged through this, and he had a good guess who.

 _What exactly did they do to him?_ Espio inwardly questioned. Plain abuse shouldn't have made Shadow throw up. There was more to those robots that he had seen. He didn't know exactly what, but he planned to find out. Gleaning information was one of his objectives, after all.

Remaining cautious, Espio left the puddle of sick behind in favor of following the thin trails of it leading away and hopefully towards the kidnapped hedgehogs. He relied on the fluid for a while, but then they became nonexistent, leaving him high and dry in the underwater maze. However, Espio didn't have to start guessing randomly just yet.

Because he was hearing something. It was a voice accompanied by thumps. Both were very faint, but they were there.

Espio's hopes rose; he couldn't be too hasty and careless though. They could very well belong to Metal or Eggman. The voice was too far away for him to recognize it. Honing onto those sounds, the ninja was careful as he continued at a slightly quicker pace than normal.

After taking a few more turns, Espio could definitely name who that voice belonged to without question.

"-will make sure you regret ever meeting me, you damned chameleon!" The purple reptile turned a blue-tinted corner just in time for the multitude of thuds that came after Shadow's exclamation. An amber iris zeroed in on a door in the middle of the hall, its owner thinking that the striped hedgehog couldn't be that hurt if he was ramming himself against the metal over and over again.

Espio swiftly jogged over to the marginally vibrating door, placing his hand on it in order to feel every time Shadow smashed into metallic slab. He scanned the barrier for any way to open it, but the door itself gave no answers.

The chameleon decided to speak before the other broke his shoulder or something similar. "Shadow," he whispered, low enough so that his voice wouldn't carry too far, but loud enough so that the hedgehog inside could hear him.

The striped rodent had stopped ramming the door at his voice, but now a growl emitted from the inside. "Why in the _hell_ are you back? Coming to torture us some more?"

 _Us?_ _So Sonic's in there too_. _Thank Chaos._ "I'm not him, Shadow. Me being here is basically the opposite of you two being tortured," he breathed, checking for any signs of approaching footsteps as he did so.

"…Detective?"

Espio nodded even though the other couldn't see. "Yes, I was sent down here to locate the Master Emerald and you two."

Shadow's voice was less rough and more controlled. "Are the others down here too?"

"No. They're on the surface, waiting for me." The image of the evil trio popped up in his mind, and he asked, "How are your conditions?"

"I'll live," Shadow replied strongly, but then he let out an audible sigh. "Sonic will too, but he's worse than I am. Metal Sonic got to him, and he can't talk."

Espio's only eye widened marginally. He couldn't begin to imagine how much pain Sonic had to be in right now. "I apologize for not bringing a Chaos emerald. I wouldn't be able to sneak with it on my person."

"He'll be fine as long if we can get out of here and find one or the Master Emerald. This door is voice activated, so you should be able to let us out. Just say open."

Espio obeyed. "Open."

Nothing happened.

He frowned deeply and tried again. "Open."

When nothing happened for a second time, it was clear that Shadow was not happy. "That damned reptile...! He had said it was voice activated, but dammit, there has to be something else…"

Espio examined the door again, not detecting anything that stood out to him. He knew that this would have been too easy. "There's nothing here that I can interact with." And if Shadow couldn't break it down, there was no way the ninja was going to be able to. Well, he assumed that it was good that they planned for this. "But you _will_ get out. The others will be able to get to you later after I find the Master Emerald."

"So you're about to leave us in _here_?"

"There's nothing I can do, Shadow. Especially without getting noticed. My mission is to pinpoint your and the gem's locations without tipping our adversaries off. Getting you two out would have been a plus, but the plan isn't completely ruined." Espio palmed his communicator and pressed a button on its side. "This is the location of Shadow and Sonic."

" _Yes! Roger."_

He cut the connection.

"You have a communicator?"

Espio slipped said device back into his glove. "Yes, but I'm trying to keep the talking to a minimum. We don't know what kind of sensors they have down here. Tails has a radar, and I just gave him my location."

"So he knows where we are now…"

"And he knows where to send the rescue crew," the ninja added on. He then glanced back the way he came, knowing that he had to get along now. But before that… "Shadow, I saw my other self walking with a robotic bat and rabbit. They were talking about you. What happened?"

"That doesn't matter," the hedgehog responded stubbornly, "But what does is their abilities. Rabbit is powerful with her bat, but along with that, she has her ears."

Espio blinked. "Ears?"

"They can stretch and are electrified. I didn't know that at first, and that's how we got taken in the first damn place."

The visual of that small metallic bunny popped up, and he couldn't help the doubt that had leaked into his voice. "She _alone_ took you two out?" It wasn't that he didn't believe the other; it was just hard to picture one robot defeating Sonic _and_ Shadow. But then again, according to what Blaze had said, the bots were near invincible with that energy in their system.

"She did." The hedgehog almost growled before changing the subject. "Bat's more dangerous. He might not be as strong as her, but he can shoot air out of his fingertips, and his ears can produce vibrations that destroy your balance."

Espio made a mental note to be _extra_ careful from now on. "I saw vomit on the floor earlier. Was that because of-"

"Yes," Shadow cut him off, obvious in not wanting to talk about it.

The ninja respected his wishes, not carrying on that topic of conversation. Espio took a deep breath, readying himself for the second half of his journey. "I'll be off then." He then directed his next words to the silent occupant inside. "It shouldn't take too long. Hang in there, Sonic."

"He heard you," Shadow said after a moment, "Now go so we can get out of here."

"Right." Espio was about to step away, but he had to say this before he went. "And keep it down. Don't give them more reasons to torture you."

There was a muffled snort. "Leave, chameleon."

And he did.

* * *

Espio had been staring at a specific set of doors for a long while. He was currently pressed against the wall of a hallway deep within the base, this level lower than all of the other ones he had combed. The chameleon had been surprised that he hadn't run into anyone else as he steadily made his way down, but now, he understood why.

He heard voices behind the doors. They were muffled and almost drowned out by the racket coming from inside, but Espio could recognize his own voice within along with Bat, Rabbit's, and Metal Sonic's. Eggman had to be in there as well, because while the ninja hadn't heard him talk, the others had been speaking to him. Actually, more like commanding him. Espio didn't know what to make of it just yet. However, he did recall seeing a collar around the man's neck at the trade-off…

The purple chameleon was so curious to what exactly was happening inside, but he couldn't risk opening the doors himself and possibly causing all who was inside to be suspicious. He had to wait for his chance, if he ever got one.

Luckily for him, he didn't have to stand by for long.

His invisible body tensed up when an explosion thundered from beyond the barrier, his breaths becoming lighter when the automatic doors opened not a second afterwards. Espio silently watched as a generic robot slid to a stop in a location where it was continuously triggering the motion sensor. The Chaotix member examined the nonmoving mech with a smoking hole in the center of it for a brief moment before shifting his attention to the room that had been hidden from him.

Espio immediately realized that it was the room he had been looking for.

It was large, and it was crowded inside. Along the walls were machines working on machines, almost like a factory. Most of the generic bots were busying themselves, but some of them were staring where the one with the hole in its center had landed. However, the still mech held more than those bots' attentions.

Standing in the middle of the room were the ones that Espio had guessed earlier…plus one. Bat and Rabbit were beside each other, one gapping and the other apathetic. Metal Sonic had his bloodied arms crossed, and to his right was an exhausted looking Eggman, who seemed pained as he gazed upon the target. He still had that collar around his neck. Espio's corrupted twin was patting a newly reformed Omega's arm with a smug smile on his face.

"Well, looks like you're in working order. How does it feel to be back, Omega?" the evil reptile asked, turning to the red and black robot. As he was talking, the detective Espio slipped into the room unnoticed, hugging the walls and staying out of any robot's way.

"IT IS GREAT," Omega responded, lowering his smoking cannon arm. "BUT, MY QUESTION IS WHY WAS I GONE IN THE FIRST PLACE?"

The reptile waved him off. "It's not worth my time explaining." He then gestured over to Bat and Rabbit. "These are your new…coworkers: Rabbit and Bat."

Omega focused on them. "HELLO. I HOPE THAT YOU TWO LIKE DESTROYING LIKE I DO."

"Th-That was so awesome!" Bat gushed as he fist pumped the air. "Your whole arm turned into a _cannon!_ "

"IT IS NICE TO KNOW THAT YOUR OPTICAL SENSORS ARE FUNCTIONAL."

Rabbit rolled her eyes. "Ignore him. He gets distracted by the simplest of things. So big guy, you're pretty powerful, but how about we go compare our strengths? I highly doubt that you can hit one out of the park like I can."

"I WILL GLADLY ACCEPT YOUR CHALLENGE." The bulky mech paused before glancing over to the observing chameleon. "IF THAT IS OKAY WITH YOU."

"P-Please say yes!" Bat begged, "I-I want to see more explosions!"

Metal Sonic then produced a noise that was similar to a scoff. "They all act like _children_. Espio, do you seriously think-"

"It doesn't matter what they act like, Metal," the horned reptile interrupted him, tone bland, "As long as they get the job done – and they _will_ – it doesn't matter."

Bat laughed at that. "H-He's right! W-We'll grow on you pretty soon Uncle Mets!"

The metallic Sonic stiffened up. "Please refrain from calling me that."

The evil Espio had a smirk on his face. "It fits," he said, and Metal's red eyes flashed. The chameleon didn't respond, instead, he drifted his gaze over to the quiet Eggman. "How long is it before Psy is done, doctor?"

The human stifled a yawn as he scanned over the working bots, finally zeroing in on something to the side. The see-through Espio followed his line of sight and saw a couple of worker mechs fixing up a machine that looks almost exactly like Silver. The only thing it was missing was an arm.

"He'll be done in about five minutes." Eggman's voice was tired and worn and calculated, like he had to think about every word he said.

The purple reptile nodded. "Good." He gave Omega, Bat, and Rabbit his attention again. "We'll go after Psy gets activated so that we can test his skills as well."

The bunny shrugged. "That's fine with me."

"I-I can wait five minutes," the winged robot commented before excitedly approaching Omega, asking the bigger bot to show him all of his features.

Metal Sonic led Eggman over to where the deactivated Psy was getting worked on, waiting in silence.

Still hanging out by the wall, Espio took hold of his communicator and just pressed the button. He didn't dare speak into it. He held it down for a second before cutting the connection, letting go a relieved breath when Tails didn't respond.

Espio's amber orb rose from the device and fixated on the item sitting in a large cylinder container on the far wall, it pulsating a bright green light. The kit should be smart enough to understand that Espio had just completed his other main objective: locating the Master Emerald.

Espio could easily leave now, his mission being complete. The door was open, and he hadn't slipped up somehow. His body wasn't moving though because he was thinking. He could possibly facilitate this inevitable fight by…

The ninja glanced to the side, eying the work the generic robots were doing. He narrowed his single eye when he spotted a disembodied head on a table. It was colored dark red and black, similar to Penumbra's appearance. That had to be Boar.

A new plan put itself together in his mind, and all he had to do was bide his time. His friends shouldn't mind this little deviation.

The five minutes ticked by quickly, and it wasn't long before Metal Sonic and Eggman were disconnecting a multitude of wires from an activated Psy, him now being chock-full of the glowing jewel's energy.

When those cyan opticals flared to life, Espio's twin was sure to be the first one seen. "I'm Master Espio," he introduced himself before bobbing his head over to Metal, "And he's…" Lips curled upwards. "…your uncle."

The blue mech's body violently twitched. "I strongly dislike you."

"Ignore him, Psy." Light blue eyes that were trained on Metal snapped back over to the grinning purple reptile. "Welcome to the world. I'm going to be blunt in saying that you were created to destroy my enemies. Do you have any comments about that?" Psy just stared at him, not saying a single word. The chameleon's brow creased. "Can you not speak?"

It was then that Psy cocked his head marginally at him. "I can."

"Ah. One of few words. I can appreciate that," Espio said, cutting his eyes over to Bat for a split second. "So…" he stepped to the side so that the other main robots could be seen. "You'll be working with them, and I'm sure that they, along with I, would like to see what your capable of. Follow us to a training room, would you?"

"I have nothing else to do."

"Alright then, it's time to go." Espio then addressed Metal. "Send a bot when Boar is almost ready." Before the Sonic look-a-like got to answer, the reptile was grabbed by an impatient Bat and flown out of the room, followed by Rabbit, Psy, and Omega.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Eggman ground out. "You don't have to let him know. You can – gahh!"

Espio watched in shock when the human instantly crumbled to the floor, static electricity causing his muscles to convulse. _That collar…is a shock collar! And…_ The ninja paid attention to the remote in Metal's clawed hand. _And he's controlling it._

"I didn't ask for your input." Metal walked away from the twitching scientist on the ground in order to overlook the development of Boar.

As Eggman wobblily regained his footing, Espio came to a conclusion. The doctor – at this point in time – wasn't the bad guy. He was nothing more than a mere worker, a slave to them. He was trapped here like Sonic and Shadow were.

That gave the ninja food for thought until it was time for him to make his move.

And that time was when Eggman and Metal Sonic were in the middle of hooking up Boar to the machine the Master Emerald was contained above.

Taking a deep breath to control his rapid heartrate, Espio left his position against the wall and lightly treaded back over to the open doorway. The ninja subtly shook his tense muscles loose and hoped that his acting skills were up to par. He sure looked the part; they didn't know that he had his eye taken out as well. The chameleon peered over his shoulder to make sure his doppelganger wasn't actually making a return. It was clear.

After exhaling heavily one more time, he turned himself visible and stepped back into the room. "Is he done yet?" he questioned, his tone more commanding and sharp than usual.

"Does he look done yet, chameleon?" Metal responded without turning around. Espio kept his composure as he strolled deeper into the space, eventually ending up right beside the blue robot. "We just put the last wire in place." Metal added on before moving over to the M.E.'s machine, flipping switches.

Espio observed him for a while. He then focused on Eggman and smothered any surprise when he met the human's calculating gaze. The doctor most likely knew that something was awry. Espio only wished that the man would go with the flow, not saying anything until it was safe to do so.

With one final push, the wires began to hum, and Espio stared at Boar. Potentially the most dangerous of the series.

The ninja whipped his head upwards, frowning up at the ceiling and pretending to be troubled. "Metal, did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" The robot and Eggman lifted their chins as well.

"You didn't hear that thump? It came from the floor above this one." Espio then looked Metal in the eyes and ordered, "Go see what it is."

Metal stubbornly didn't obey. It wasn't totally unexpected. "It is most likely the others. There is no reason for me to-"

"I left them nowhere _near_ where that sound is coming from," Espio cut the other off, a growl leaking into his voice. "Go see Metal, because if its intruders and they are left alone because of _you_ , then don't be shocked if I take care of them _second_."

It was silent for a moment before Metal said, "None of those robots will be able to defeat me. I am not scared of them nor you. However, the opportunity of killing one of the blue rat's friends and bringing him their dead body is too good for me to pass up." The azure mech held out the remote control for him to take. Espio did so without hesitation. "I will return soon." He flew out without another word.

The detective turned the remote around in his palm, it being very simple in structure. There was a dial for the amount and then there was a lone button to deliver.

"You aren't him." Eggman's tone was somewhat hesitant when he stated this.

Espio didn't want to drop his act just yet. He didn't know what side the human was truly on. The purple reptile steeled his gaze and facial expression. "What in the world are you talking about, doctor?" One glimpse at the machine holding the Master Emerald told him that Boar was halfway done. "Stop spouting nonsense before I-"

"Before you what, reptile?" The human was gaining confidence; the chameleon could tell. "There's nothing that you could possibly do that is worse that you've already done. Because if this stupid plan of yours, you've stripped me of everything!"

Espio just stared at him, not knowing what to say or how to act. This moment of pause had made the choice for him.

Eggman's stance marginally relaxed, yet his eyes were still keen. "I was right, you aren't him. Otherwise, he would've shocked me for that outburst." The man focused on the bandages on his face. "Accurate costume."

 _If only you knew._ Espio grunted when he broke the remote in half. "You're correct in your assumption. I won't hurt you despite everything you've done in the past."

Eggman watched it fall to the floor. "How noble of you." The rotund scientist rubbed his collared neck after glancing over at the M.E. as well. "You should leave before Metal Sonic comes back. Your little show worked earlier, but it's risky."

Espio knew it was, but… "I'm not going without the robot."

"The ro…" Comprehension flooded the human's expression. "You're going to fight fire with fire." Eggman tapped his chin before shaking his head. "Clever plan, I'll give you that. It may not work though."

The ninja rose a brow at him. "And why not?"

"Because-" Whatever Eggman was going to say was lost when the doctor peered back over his shoulder and completely froze.

The detective knew immediately that he was in serious trouble. He didn't bother turning invisible as he turned on his heel, for he had already been caught. Espio was more than ready to sprint away if one of those robots had come back, and he was up for a fight if his double had returned alone. However, neither was the case.

There was no one there.

Espio was only given a second to be confused before he was hit hard in the back of his head and harshly pushed. He gasped as he stumbled over his own feet, struggling to regain his balance. It was futile. Gravity won over.

When he crash landed, he heard, "Hello Boar. I'm doctor Eggman, your creator and master."

 _No!_ Espio inwardly gasped, pushing off the floor and hopping back up to his full height. He whirled around to see the human smiling down at an activated Penumbra look-a-like, his thin spines sharp and sticking out dangerously. He was crouching slightly, absorbing the doctor's every word.

"Don't listen to him!" Espio exclaimed, hating that he fell for that dirty trick.

Boar's glinting carmine opticals trained themselves onto him. The mech tilted his head. "You sound _really_ desperate. Like…he's about to order me to kill you or something." The red-striped robot turned back to Eggman, a smile forming. "Are you though? Because that'll be fun and messy."

"No I'm not ordering you to kill him!" Eggman opposed, and Espio felt a little uneasy when Boar looked disappointed. He liked this robot the least. The doctor cleared his throat. "I'm ordering you to teleport me out of here! Can you do that?"

"No."

Eggman blinked, befuddled. "You can't?"

"Fly, yes. Teleport, no."

The doctor stomped his foot. "Then fly me out!"

"You know the directions?"

"Yes!"

"Stop yelling. I'm not deaf," Boar crisply retorted before refocusing on Espio, who was debating whether he should attempt to attack the newly made mech or not. "What about Mr. Desperate over there?"

Eggman was about to answer, but the ninja wouldn't let him. "If you're planning to escape Eggman, then help me set Shadow and Sonic free. Shadow just needs the energy in Boar to Chaos Control out." When the man took a while to reply, he continued, "They are hurt and trapped here like you are. They can help get the Master Emerald, the echidnas can shut it down, and you won't have to worry about my twin anymore."

The doctor scowled, clenching his jaw. "Fine."

Espio's heart leapt. "Fine?"

"Yes!" Eggman hissed before addressing Boar. "Can you smoothen out your back quills?" Without verbally answering, the mech's spines flattened themselves row by row until his whole back was slick. The scientist pointed to Boar. "Get on his back, chameleon."

"Whoa what?"

They both ignored the indignant robot. Espio didn't like it, but it was the fastest way to get around. Also, the base was huge. What was the chance of them running into anyone?

The chameleon ran over and hopped onto Boar's back, disregarding the glare he received as he held onto the artificial one's neck. The not-Penumbra then became airborne, hooking his arms beneath Eggman's underarms as he did so. After lifting the human off the ground – and lowly commenting on the man's weight – they sped out of the room.

Directions were given by the doctor as they zoomed through hallways and rooms, gaining altitude as they did so. Espio remained quiet until they reached the top level, miraculously unnoticed. A couple minutes passed, and they finally ended up in the first large room Espio had encountered when he first arrived. They were at the bottom half.

"There's the exit," Eggman uttered, glancing up at a particular set of sliding doors.

"Sonic and Shadow are to the right of those doors." _Don't change your mind on me now, Eggman._

"Tell us where to go, chameleon," the scientist grumbled, and Boar produced in annoyed sound.

"What's the point of doing what _he_ wants again?"

"Just follow his directions, Boar."

Relief filled the purple Mobian's system. "Thank you."

"Start pointing before I change my mind."

* * *

There was a heavy silence in the cramped room that they were forced into. Sonic had no way of speaking, and Shadow didn't have a clue of what to say, not being a conversationalist under normal conditions.

Since the time that Espio had left, the Ultimate Lifeform had been staring at the door separating them from freedom with his ears perked, wanting to hear _anything_ that signified their rescue. As time ticked on, he was growing antsy.

It wasn't because of himself. His injuries weren't worrisome. He was very bruised, he may have a minor internal wound, and the vomit on his chest fur wasn't his definition of being in prime condition, but he was alright.

He was thinking about Espio and Sonic…one more than the other. The chameleon was down here in the belly of the beast. Who knew what was happening to him right now. And with Sonic, well…he was losing blood. Metal Sonic did not hold back on him, and the injury to the hero's throat had to be the worst. Red liquid was dripping from the cloth wrapped around his neck; it didn't seem like it was going to stop any time soon.

Sensing movement out of the corner of his eye, Shadow turned his attention to Sonic only to see his rival fighting sleep, his head dipping lower and lower. The striped Mobian kicked the azure one's leg, careful to aim for a patch of furred skin that wasn't the color of a plum.

"Stay awake Faker," he advised when Sonic jerked up, and his dull emerald irises zeroed in on him. "If you fall asleep, you might not wake up."

The blue hero opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, but he snapped it closed again, a frustrated expression on his face. Sonic wriggle against the wall, gingerly adjusting himself, tired of sitting in the same position. Shadow shared his sentiments. Being cooped up like this was the last thing he ever wanted to do, and being hurt on top of that made the experience worse.

Both he and Sonic then nearly jumped out of their skins when there was a knock on their door. "Are you awake in there, boys?" Shadow instantly snarled at that voice, it not belonging to the right Espio. He didn't miss how Sonic stiffened up beside him. There was a low chuckle on the other side. "I'll take that as a yes. Open."

 _What the hell?_ Shadow internally questioned when that damned chameleon was revealed. _Why didn't the voice command work when Espio tried? Different Inflection?_

A malicious grin was present on that scaled face. "Hello again."

"Go fuck yourself," Shadow spat, taking one out of Boom's book. He was nowhere in the mood for this reptile.

"I'll pass," Espio drawled out, "Instead, I'll be taking you two out for another round."

A raspy gasp emitted from Sonic, and Shadow was cursing like a sailor in his mind. Before he could respond verbally, a second figure stepped into Shadow's line of sight. It was a robotic Silver…Psy, if he remembered right. The Ultimate Lifeform then blinked down when the chains around his ankles were surrounded in a cyan glow.

Before Shadow could fully process what was going on, his world was flipped upside down. He hissed when the back of his head slammed against the floor, him losing contact with the ground a second afterwards. The striped hedgehog was floating in the air now by his feet, glaring up at Psy as he was guided out of the room.

Once he was in the hallway, Shadow noticed that the evil Espio hadn't just brought the psychic doppelganger with him. Bat, Rabbit, and…the _other_ Omega were eying him as well. Shadow gritted his teeth as he hung, despising his current position.

"Hm…" Heated rubies focused on the upside down purple reptile, wishing that he'd just combust on the spot. "Psy, why are you only picking up the chains and not Shadow himself?"

"I can't." The white robot's blue gaze never left the Ultimate Lifeform. "I can only use my powers on inanimate objects."

Espio lips twitched downwards. "That's no serious matter, because you _do_ have some more tricks up your sleeve." That frown morphed into a smirk when he faced Shadow. "And he'll get to show those off on you two very soon. Get the other one too, Psy."

Shadow glanced over to Sonic just in time to see him get roughly yanked into the air, too tired to hide his pained grimace. Being held like that must be causing him extreme agony because of his broken leg. The striped hedgehog clenched his fists. "Leave him alone dammit! He's had enough!"

"It's not enough until I say it is." Espio scoffed. "And plus, Metal was the only one who got to work with him. While Omega and Psy have you, Bat and Rabbit can have their turn with the silent hero."

"Metal Sonic?" Psy inquired.

"O-Our uncle," Bat replied with a snicker.

"Oh." The psychic mech nodded. "Okay."

Rabbit approached a obviously hurting Sonic and poked him when her sporty tool. He winced, swallowing thickly and promptly coughing up some blood. "I've already had my time with you, so Bat can go all out."

The winged robot's ears twitched. "I-I don't know…wouldn't it be too easy? A-At least Shadow could move a little bit!"

"DO NOT COMPLAIN," Omega admonished, "HE IS A VALID TARGET WHETHER HE CAN MOVE OR NOT."

"Omega's right." Espio turned his back on them, starting to arrogantly walk away. "Take what you can get. Let's go."

"I will destroy _all of you,_ " Shadow snarled when he was forcefully moved, venom leaking into his tone. "I will rip you-" He cut himself off when Sonic gained his attention, the azure speedster shaking his head at him. His open expression communicated 'Don't anger them'. The words, "It doesn't matter if they're angry or not. They're going to do what they want anyway," were on the tip of Shadow's tongue, but he didn't let them loose.

Instead, he thought, _Where in the hell are you, detective?_

* * *

"They're gone!"

Espio, pulse racing, dropped down off of Boar's back and scampered over to the wide open room that was supposed to hold Shadow and Sonic. He scanned the space like the two hedgies would pop out of the walls, but unsurprisingly, that didn't happen. The room remained empty.

Boar and Eggman landed behind him, the latter stroking his large mustache. "Is there any chance that those two had escaped themselves?"

"No…" the purple Mobian breathed, "The others must have them." Mind going haywire, he whirled around to face the duo. "We have to go find-"

"We are _not_." Eggman strongly opposed, tone inarguable. "Listen to yourself, chameleon. Panicking in this situation is the _last_ thing that we want to do. Going after them even with Boar on our side would be a death sentence."

"You're underestimating me, human?" Boar cut his gaze onto the doctor. "Because I'm sure that I can kill _anything_ that gets in my way."

"I'm not underestimating you," Eggman quickly mended, "I'm saying that we need to leave. _Now._ Are you coming or not, chameleon? Because I _will_ leave you."

As much as Espio wanted to take action, he knew that the man had a point. Technically, the others still didn't know that he had been here. He could meet back up with his friends, and they now knew where the Master Emerald was. If it wasn't moved by the time they got down there…

All the more reason to reunite as soon as possible.

"I'm coming." Espio jumped back onto Boar, securing himself against the robot. _Hang in there you two, wherever you are._

Said mech huffed as he picked up Eggman. "I can't _wait_ until you stop doing that."

"If you hurry up and get us out of here, then you won't have to worry about me anymore," Espio reasoned, itching to be back above sea level.

Boar grinned. "On that note…"

The robot zoomed off with a chameleon and human in tow.

* * *

 **Will the hedgehogs' and the Master Emerald's rescue go off without a hitch? Don't count on it ;)**

 **Next chapter…hide and seek!**


	38. Chapter 38

**Disclaimer- I don't own.**

 **Chapter 38- Ready or not…**

It almost felt surreal being back here, being among the stagnant waters and the large ruins of once elegant castles.

Silver had never thought that he would make a return to Kingdom Valley. Actually, he made an effort to stay away from the general area in his own time, not wanting to revisit those nightmarish memories. It was unfortunate that he had to return to the desolate place, and it wasn't even on good terms.

His friends were taken, and well…he didn't know how well he would take their deaths a _second_ time.

The psychic believed in Espio. The purple chameleon had already called in about Shadow's, Sonic's, _and_ the Master Emerald's location. Cooling winds combed through his low hanging quills as he stood at the edge of a towering wall they all were waiting on, golden eyes focused downward in the direction the entrance of Aquatic base was. He could see it, but hopefully anyone who exited it would not spot their group right away. All they had to do was to wait for Espio to show back up unharmed; Silver was assigned to go pick him up and bring him back over so the reptile could fill them in.

Then, they would take whatever measures to bring that evil chameleon down. It was only a matter of time.

"Do you wish that we could've met him?"

The psychic tore his gaze off of the ruins and trained it on Blaze, who had just joined him on the ledge. Her arms were folded across her chest, expression solemn yet curious as she glanced at him. Silver automatically knew who she was talking about, the hedgehog/cat duo having been filled in on most of the events that had happened before they showed up.

Most importantly, they had learned about the other Mephiles.

Silver pondered the cat's question for a moment before subtly shrugging. "I mean…yeah I guess. It would've been awkward at first, but I'm sure that it was like that for everyone else. They ended up really liking him, so…" he trailed off, deeply sighing. He couldn't imagine what it was like for them to lose him.

Blaze's golds softened a bit as she nodded. "I have no doubt that we would've also. He was a hero, saving Cream and Penumbra." She turned her attention to the gloomy sight below. "The complete opposite of the one we knew."

Silver hummed in agreement; however, before he could properly respond, another voice butted into their quiet conversation. Coincidentally, it was Silver's own. "Hey other me. Do you see Espio yet?"

Both the psychic and feline peered over their shoulders to spot Grey jogging his way over, done speaking with Rogue by the small plane Rouge had somehow procured from G.U.N to facilitate the journey here for the non-fliers. Tails' aircraft could only hold so many people.

Silver shook his head when Grey stepped up on the other side of Blaze, looking down at the semi-flooded landscape. He didn't know what to make of his dimensional twin. On one hand, he seemed nice enough, but on the other…Silver had been informed about – and had experienced – his double's extreme mood swings. "Not yet, but he should be back any second-"

"Are you sure though? I mean…" Grey ran his fingers through his forehead quills, biting his bottom lip. "He's been down there for a while and it's been a while since he last called in and…" Silver blinked in surprise when tears pricked the corner of his doppelganger's eyes. "What if…they got Espio? And if they got him, then they know that we're out _here_ , and then they'll kill Shadow and Sonic just to spite us!" Grey faced the stunned pair. "Th-They're doomed, aren't they?"

Blaze opened her mouth to obviously disagree, but no words passed her parted lips. Grey had clung to her dress and had rested his head on her shoulder. Sobbing filled the air along with incomprehensible mumbles. Blaze seemed like she didn't know what to do, her body instantly tensing up, so Silver took over.

"Um…Grey?" Silver went over and placed a hesitant hand on his twin's arm. "Give Blaze her space, would you? She doesn't exactly like people in her bubble."

Grey promptly released her, sniffing. "Sorry! Sorry! I-It's just that _my_ Blaze-" Silver noticed that the feline's mouth twitched downwards, and he could understand why she didn't like that her twin had been nothing but a domestic house cat. "-likes to cuddle and it h-helps when I get upset. With Charmy not being here, i-it's just hard, you know?"

Blaze didn't respond, focused on fixing her dress. Silver didn't miss her pointedly gesturing over to his double though. The psychic inwardly groaned as he held up his arms. "Come here." The words barely had formed before Grey hugged him, crying into his chest fur. Silver awkwardly patted him on the back. "Everything's going to be alright! Espio's on his way now. Don't cry…please?" There was no answer, and he locked eyes with Blaze only to notice an amused glint in her gaze. Silver weakly glared at her.

Grey lifted his head, tear stains on his cheeks. "You sure?"

"I believe him," Blaze responded as she whirled her body to face the ledge again. Her eyes were narrowed, focused on something far below. "Because I see Espio right now." Silver's brow creased at that. Blaze's tone was way off. Something wasn't right.

"Really?" Grey beamed, his emotions performing a complete one-eighty. He leaned away from Silver and joined Blaze. "I was so stupid for thinking that-" When that smile swiftly melted off of his double's face, Silver believed that it was time to be enlightened on exactly what was going on.

He stepped back up to the ledge and squinted into the distance. He swore that his heart skipped a beat. Espio was coming their way, but he definitely wasn't alone. "That's…That's Eggman!"

"And _Boar_ ," Blaze hissed, her tail snapping back and forth in agitation.

"Do we know for sure that it's _your_ Espio?" The beginnings of a growl leaked into Grey's voice before he shouted back at the oblivious group behind them. "Espio's coming! But we don't know which one it is!"

Everyone was suddenly on guard. "The hell you mean you don't know?" Boom barked from his place by the Tornado.

"Exactly what I said, jerk!"

"The Espio we're looking at has Eggman and Boar with him," Silver clarified, his hands clenching into fists at his side. The psychic's gut was telling him to go down there and fight until he was satisfied because it made absolutely _no_ sense why Espio would be joined by that doctor and that future murderer. But…his mind stopped him. The evil Espio wouldn't do this. It would be too risky. So…was it or was it not…?

"Boar?!" multiple voices shouted out in alarm.

Rosy bounded over to a confused Penumbra, the striped hedgie cocking his head at her when she stood protectively in front of him. "We can't let him get close to Nummy! We are _not_ letting that happen!"

"That can't be our Espio!" Knuckles bared his teeth. "We need to-"

" _Don't attack!"_ Everyone whipped their attentions to Tails, who was settled in the cockpit of the Tornado. The kit had been the one in charge of the communicator and of documenting Espio's location using a modified radar in his plane's dashboard. The vulpine held the device up higher so that all could hear Espio clearly. _"I'll explain everything when I get up there!"_

Vector bounded over to the fox, and Tails tossed him the radio when he held his hand out. "How in the heck do we know that this isn't some kind of trick? Because I PROMISE if-"

" _Charmy's favorite candy is chocolate."_

The croc scoffed. "That was a lucky guess."

" _You, Charmy, and I first met Red and Rosy in Spagonia. Rosy almost attacked me with a bush-"_ Said pinkette scratched her cheek sheepishly. _"and you were angry that the Professor didn't have a job for us."_

"I don't remember that bush part…" Vector increased his grip on the device. "But, you better have a good explanation, Espio!"

" _I do."_ The line was cut.

It seemed like it _was_ their Espio meeting back up with them, but Silver was still iffy about Boar joining as well. They couldn't trust robots – well, the robots conjured up by that wicked chameleon himself – because they either self-destructed, putting everyone's lives in danger, or they were just simply homicidal. However, it seemed like he didn't have a say here. Boar was coming whether he liked it or not.

Boom's quills were beginning to bristle already. "I _swear_ if that bucket of bolts tries a single damn thing, I'll-"

"What are you going to do?" Red rose a dubious brow. "That thing is chock full of the Master Emerald's energy. I can sense it. The best course of action here is to _not_ provoke him. Espio is bringing him up here for a reason."

The azure hedgehog just scowled. "Shut _up_ , Dreads."

"I think he's right though, dude." Rogue faced Boom. "If Espio's a good guy, and if Boar hadn't attacked him, doesn't that make Boar a good guy…?"

Boom's scowl morphed into a glower. "Keep that logic bs away from me. I just know what that _thing_ can do, and all I'm saying is if he goes for Penumbra, then Imma raise hell."

"There's no need for that." Silver, Blaze, and Grey all startled when a familiar voice piped up behind them. The trio whirled around to find Eggman, Espio, and Boar floating behind them. The mammals swiftly shuffled backwards to make room and to increase the distance between them and the metallic hedgehog.

All pairs of eyes were on the newcomers now as they landed.

Silver's wary gaze first examined Espio, searching for any injuries as the chameleon climbed off the robot's back. There were none. The psychic then focused on Eggman, who wasn't in the best condition. He had bags under his eyes, oil and dirt stains on his clothes, and looked like he was fighting to stay up on his feet. Silver frowned, remembering what future Penumbra told him about the doctor. Had Eggman really killed his friends? He wasn't exactly in the best condition right now.

The white hedgehog pushed that thought to the back of his head as he trained his wary gaze on Boar. The mech looked the same as he did in the future: violent and deadly. A cold shiver travelled down his spine, and he resisted the urge to throw the bot off the thick wall. _Don't provoke him,_ he reminded himself.

"There isn't any need for fighting, right now at least." Espio continued after his previous statement. The chameleon gestured over to the human and robot. "Eggman and Boar are on our side."

Rouge, standing beside a silent Omega, eyed those two up and down. "Are you completely sure about that?"

Instead of the chameleon, Eggman responded with a nod, readjusting his glasses. "As much as I despise working with all of you annoyances, especially now that there are _more_ of you, I hate working with that cursed reptile even _more_ ," he spat, "So yes, I don't mind having a _momentary_ truce. I-" When a guttural growl interrupted him, Eggman scanned the crowd for the source of the noise. Nummy was snarling at the human, a fire raging in his maroon orbs. The scientist subtly scooted closer to Boar. "Ah Penumbra. It's good to see you again."

Rosy was pushing against Nummy as he crept forward with his lips pulled back. "Stop it Nummy! They aren't the enemy right now!" Penumbra seemed to be ignoring her, and she pleaded to the crowd. "Can _somebody_ help me out here?"

"Actually no. Nobody move." Boar crouched down to Nummy's level, his metallic spines expanding and his voice becoming more jeering. He snickered when Penumbra turned his attention to him, still growling. "Let him loose! I haven't gotten to kill anyone yet, and the rat would be a great _warmup_."

"No, you dense robot! Did you _not_ hear what I just said?" Eggman chastised, and Boar rolled his eyes. He settled on his hind legs, somewhat relaxing his stance.

"Tell _him_ that." The mech gestured over to an intimidating Penumbra. "Or else I might get a little _testy…_ "

"You better gain more control of him, doctor." Blaze narrowed her hardened golds at Boar, everything about her stiff and alert.

"And _you_ better just worry about yourself, kitty-cat," Boar retorted coldly, "Never know what might happen to you."

"Are you _threatening_ me?" Blaze's ears were flattened against her head, and Silver could feel heat coming off of her.

"Blaze…!" Silver had the plan to calm her down, but he was ignored.

"Well, I'm sure not complimenting your bright personality, now am I?"

When Blaze's hands were engulfed with flames, the psychic decided that it was time to cool things down. The cat never got riled up like this, and while Silver understood why, now was _definitely_ not the best time.

He stood in between the feuding duo. "Calm down, Blaze! We need you levelheaded right now!" He then gave Boar a pointed look after the feline put out her flames, trying to keep his own anger at bay. "We _all_ need to work together to save Sonic and Shadow."

"Those names mean _absolutely_ nothing to me."

Silver's brow twitched. Espio took charge at his annoyed silence. "We need to get focused, for we don't have a lot of time before we lose our advantage." He glanced over to a still clearly agitated Penumbra. "Especially him."

Red went over and placed a mitt on Nummy's shoulder, temporarily gaining the attention of the striped rodent. "Stop, Penumbra. Believe it or not, we're all friends here."

Nummy looked at the echidna like he was spouting nonsense, but eventually, he backed down. His glare directed at the human and robot did not lose any heat.

"How long are you talking about, Espio?" Amy asked, tearing her stare off of the menacing Boar. Her uncertainty about this whole situation was obvious on her face.

"Fifteen minutes, and I'm being optimistic." The chameleon took a deep steadying breath. "That's how long it would be until they realize that he's missing." He bobbed his head over towards a barely listening Boar.

"And there is no telling what that chameleon would do to those two walking pincushions when he finds out." Eggman added on, rubbing the mysterious collar around his neck.

"It's nice to know that you care, doctor." Rouge's lips had marginally curved upwards.

"I do _not!_ I just want to destroy them and all of you on _my_ terms, not his!"

"Yeah yeah, knowing that the doc has a heart is fine and dandy, but…" VC ended that conversation. "We need to go save them, like NOW."

"No. Not all of us." Those statements from the purple reptile halted any potential actions. "Everyone shouldn't go down there and become a target, and also, everyone isn't needed. For Shadow and Sonic to escape, all they need is for Penumbra to teleport them out of there."

Grey glimpsed over to said hedgehog before scrunching his nose up. "Yeah um, no offense, but you must be out of your _mind_ if you think sending him down there by himself is a good idea. Penumbra's not all the way with us yet, and well…having him back in the other you's greedy little grasp is a giant step _backward_. It'll be one more trapped friend for us, and one more _weapon_ for him."

"I never said that he was going alone," Espio corrected him, and Grey blinked owlishly. "I was going to suggest that he go in with you and Silver, actually."

Silver was just going to go with it, understanding the urgency of the situation, but it seemed like his twin wasn't satisfied without a reason. "Why us?"

"It's because of your powers," Tails provided an answer, tapping his chin, "Your telekinesis will still work on the robots, so if you run into any of them, you can hold them off until Penumbra gets to Sonic and Shadow." The kit then hopped out of the cockpit and hovered over to Silver, handing over a spare communicator. "I can guide you guys to the exact location thanks to Espio."

The psychic tossed the device once. "Sounds like a plan." _I would do anything for the fate of the future._

"Sure does!" Grey smiled confidently. "Well get them out in no time! No worries!"

"Good. Now that's set." Knuckles tapped his foot in thought. "But what about the Master Emerald? I believe that now's the perfect time to get to the gem as well."

"I second that." Rouge agreed with the guardian. "When they find out that something's not right, who knows what they'll do. My fear is them somehow taking the beauty somewhere else."

Espio seemed to ponder that for a second. "That's not a bad idea," he muttered, an amber iris zeroing in on the radio in his palm, "I can lead you two there, since the room it's kept is farther away." The ninja then addressed Tails, "But just in case-"

"Being the GPS for two different groups would be kinda hard." The kit scratched the back of his neck. He then peered back at TT, his quiet twin occupying the seat behind him. "Think you can help with this, other me?"

TT blinked in slight surprise, recovering a brief moment later. "I…s-sure?"

"It'll be easy." Tails grinned as he searched for another communicator.

"I'm going after the Master Emerald too." Red stepped up beside Knuckles. "If that thing is stubborn as hell, then you'll be glad that I'm there," he said in response to the guardian's change in expression.

"I'm going t-"

"No you're not."

Boom's brow creased at Red's swift decline of his offer. "And why the hell not? I'm not just gonna sit up here and _wait-_ "

Silver barely noticed the echidna's glimpse over at Eggman and Boar, and by the inaction of those two, he believed that they hadn't caught it. The doctor looked barely awake, and the robot wasn't paying attention to their talk at all. He was gazing blandly out at the landscape.

"Just in case," was all that Red said.

Boom huffed, irked, but he yielded anyway. "Hurry up and shut down that thing so I can kick some ass."

The echidna's lips twitched. "That's the plan."

"We'll call for reinforcements if things go awry and we can't handle it alone." Espio nodded over to the twin foxes before focusing on Silver. "Good luck."

"You'll need it we than we will." The psychic tucked the device in his glove, gesturing over at Penumbra a second afterward. "Let's go Nummy. We have to go save Sonic and Shadow."

Penumbra frowned confusingly at him, and Silver didn't know or not whether the striped Mobian had completely understood him. It was weird and something to get used to. However, before he could attempt to change his words up, determination shone in Penumbra's dark eyes. "Save Sonic and Shadow. Have to."

Silver watched as Nummy approached, wondering if he would end up the same as he was in the future…minus the murder happy part. Or would his personality path change after this? Only time would tell.

When the darker one got close enough, the white hedgehog used his powers to make Penumbra float, planning to help the other get down to solid ground. Penumbra didn't seem to mind. Golden irises then drifted over to the other group, seeing them lining up at the edge of the wall. Red and Knuckles were going to glide, and Rouge was going to carry Espio down.

Silver turned toward Blaze when a thought popped inside of his head. She was looking askance at Boar out of the corner of her eye. "Just stay away from him," he advised lowly, "I know that this feels all sorts of wrong, but he isn't on the evil Espio's side anymore. And technically, he hasn't killed anyone."

"Yet." The cat's stare pierced his. However, it was clear that she had lost some steam. "But I'll keep that in mind. I shouldn't have let him get to me like that. He's currently an ally, no matter how untrustworthy."

"Enough talking to your girlfriend!" Silver grunted when one of his arms were grabbed and pulled. Grey's impatience had apparently taken over. "We gotta go!"

Silver managed to put back together his scrambled mind just in time to surround himself in cyan when he was suddenly airborne. "She's not my girlfriend!" he harshly whispered.

To his chagrin, he was waved off and left behind by Grey who was following Espio's group down to the entrance.

Silver then addressed an observing Penumbra. "Don't listen to him."

Nummy blinked. "Okay?"

Feeling slightly better, Silver trailed after his flying double.

* * *

"There was not anyone up there. You are just paranoid and-"

Metal Sonic silenced himself once he had flown into the room containing the Master Emerald, realizing that his specific audience was nowhere to be found. All that greeted him was the jewel itself and the lesser robots finishing armor that the chameleon had imagined up.

The blue bot grounded himself in the middle of the busy room, noticing loose wires curled on the floor by the luminescent gem. That reptile must have taken the doctor and Boar to join in with the rest of those children. The next individual who referred to him as an 'uncle' would be immediately dismembered without a second thought.

Metal eyed the metallic suit being assembled in the corner of the room before making his way toward the Master Emerald. It was about time that he got a taste of the power the newer series was bathing in. The azure mech gingerly picked up the wires, examining the ends of them. They should fit perfectly. One small panel on his side slid open to revel notches underneath.

The abiotic Sonic connected the wires to himself, and when they were secure, Metal shifted his focus to the machine holding the Master Emerald. He pressed a couple buttons, flipped a couple switches, and waited for a change. There instantly was one.

It was like he was being filled up with a mix of raging fire, crackling lightning, and radioactive waste. It was tingling inside of him, causing him to feel – as living people would label it – numb. However, it didn't cause him alarm. Metal rose his arm and gazed at his open palm, it prickling under the surface of his metallic hide. The energy was changing him, empowering him.

Metal Sonic then let his hand fall when the machine signaled that the process was done. He disconnected the wires and gave the glowing green diamond in front of him a long look. It was at this point right now that Metal believed that dumping that fat doctor was the best choice he had ever made.

Eggman was a fool, inadequate. He made grave mistakes that kept Metal from his end goal. Granted, the purple chameleon was keeping him from killing his irritating copy as well, but this was planned. Metal had agreed to causing the hero much harm before seeing the life flee from his tortured eyes.

With that image floating around in his artificial mind, Metal returned his gaze to the suit of armor. It was almost complete, and he would be able to infuse the energy into it. However, Espio was more than able to do that himself. Metal Sonic would babysit while the reptile finished the project that he started. The bot was done with anything construction.

So going with that course of action, the azure mech turned on his heel, activated his boosters, and went to search for that crafty chameleon.

It didn't take too long to locate them. When Metal had gotten close enough to hear the yells and the cheers and the explosions, all he had to do was to follow the noise…after stopping his energy circulation of course. Couldn't be too careful.

The blue robot decreased his speed and touched down as he approached a set of automatic doors, voices coming from beyond them. They weren't as loud as before, but they were still noticeable.

It wasn't long before the motion sensors detected him, and he was greeted with an interesting sight. The chameleon and the robots he had taken were currently in a medium-sized room with one wall being completely glass so that one could view the marine plants and animals. However, the clear pane wasn't what was eye-catching about the space.

There were blood stains splattered randomly along the walls and the floor, accompanied by burn marks on the metal with no set pattern as well.

Espio was leaning leisurely on the left wall, arms loosely crossed with a satisfied smirk on his face. Whatever that was causing the entertained expression was positioned in the center of the room.

There, Bat was sitting comfortably on top of an unconscious – Metal could unfortunately see him breathing – Shadow. The striped hedgehog had seen better days. Bruises that stood out even against his dark fur littered his entire body, hand-sized portions of fur had been burned away, a thick puddle of blood was forming below the still body, and an arm was bent at a horribly wrong angle.

Neither Bat nor Espio were paying attention to the Ultimate Lifeform though. They were intently gazing at Psy and Omega. The white mech was holding Rabbit's bat up with his powers close to the red and black bot. One of Omega's hands had been changed into a flamethrower, and flames were swallowing up the top half of the sporty weapon.

Rabbit stood to the side, watching while red and orange tendrils danced. Wrapped up in one of her elastic ears was a barely conscious Sonic. The azure Mobian was hanging by his wrists. He was in no better condition than Shadow, panting heavily with his expression permanently twisted up in a pained grimace. Metal discerned the fright swirling beneath those emerald orbs of his.

He saw that Boar and Eggman were nowhere to be found. The chameleon must've grown tired of the doctor as well, having milked him for what he was worth. Boar was a convenient garbage disposal.

Bat was the first one to notice the new arrival.

He waved enthusiastically as Metal stepped fully into the room. "H-Hey Uncle M!" Sonic's metallic double resisted the _very_ strong urge to tear the winged one apart. No. Not now. _After_ this plan was a success, then he could dish out some discipline. "Y-You're just in time!"

All eyes were on him now. He reveled in how tense Sonic became when the hero locked his unfocused gaze onto him. "For what?" he questioned, avoiding a red stain as he went to stand by Bat.

"Wh-Whack a mole!"

"WHACK A HEDGEHOG, TO BE TECHNICALLY CORRECT." Omega rectified, cutting off the fire spouting from his arm.

Rabbit bobbed her head over at Psy. "It's his turn up next, but… Psy, do you mind giving up your turn to Uncle since he just got here?"

The psychic bot communicated a silent negative as he moved the baseball bat in Metal's direction, its handle closest to the Sonic look-a-like. "Go to town," he said as Metal grasped the tool.

He examined it for moment, agreeing with the prospect of swiftly beating and burning his target at the same time. However, Metal had been basically doing things fast his entire existence. It was time to go slow.

"I will pass on that childish game," he commented, strolling toward a clearly uneasy Sonic.

"N-Now that was unnecessary…"

Metal disregarded Bat as he stepped up to the battered hero, staring his infuriating copy in his black and swollen eyes. The robot expected for the other to tremble in fear, knowing that he was completely powerless in this situation. But he should have known better. It seemed to take a lot out of Sonic to scowl and glare, his quills quivering in a weak attempt to bristle them.

There was a promise in those green eyes that would never get fulfilled if Metal had anything to say about it.

"Your attempt in threatening me is laughable, copy." The azure robot reached up and tore the cloth around the Mobian's neck away with his unoccupied fingers. Sonic silently yelled out in agony as the gash met open air again. Metal watched as blood dripped from it. "Try harder next time."

The mech dropped the stained wrapping before grabbing a handful of Sonic's head spines and yanking them down. Now he had better access. The hero weakly struggled as Metal rose the red-hot bat to the hedgie's throat. He wasted no time in pressing the scorching metal against the other's delicate skin, tears rolling down purple-splotched cheeks as sizzling filled the air.

Sonic's wriggling had increased in intensity, and his eyes were squeezed shut. Metal waited until the hero had ceased moving to remove the baseball bat. The blue body was limp, but his chest was struggling to rise and fall. He was still alive.

Metal Sonic returned the weapon to Rabbit. "Drop him," he ordered, and she did. Sonic slumped to the floor, his neck angrily blistering.

"How long have you been waiting to do that, huh Metal?" Said mech peered over his shoulder at the question. Espio pushed off the wall and sauntered over.

The not-Sonic produced a sound similar to a snort. "Long enough."

"I'd hate to be him right now." Rabbit nudged an unresponsive Sonic with her foot.

"I-I second that!" Bat chuckled.

"FROM ONE TO TEN," Omega started, "HOW MUCH DID YOU ENJOY THAT?"

"Seven," Metal replied after a moment, "When I kill him, my prime objective would be complete."

Espio's smirk widened. "All in due time." It then waned however when the chameleon glanced the way Metal had come. "Where's Boar and Eggman?"

"I should be the one asking that." Espio knew where those two were, not him. "You took them."

Metal did not understand why the chameleon suddenly tensed up. "I _took_ them? What?"

Espio couldn't have possibly forgotten. The robot was beginning to believe that something wasn't quite right here. "You watched the doctor and I finish Boar, and then you sent me to investigate a suspicious noise. When I came back, you, Boar, and the doctor were gone."

The chameleon's eye was widened to its fullest. This was the most shocked Metal had ever seen him. "That wasn't me…" he muttered.

"What do you mean that he was not…" The metallic Sonic trailed off, finally understanding his grand mistake.

"That wasn't _me_ , Metal!" Espio hissed, his glare hotter than a thousand suns. He jabbed a finger over at Shadow and Sonic. "You take them back to their room and guard them!" Before Metal could respond, the reptile pointed at the bunny. "Rabbit, you and I are going back to the Master Emerald. Bat, Psy, and Omega, fly outside and search! Kill anyone you find," he growled, "Go!"

At first, no one moved. Psy tilted his head and addressed his coworkers. "Has he ever been this mad before?"

"N-Nope." Bat slowly stood up. "L-Like…he's really pissed right now."

Espio was basically trembling in rage. "And if you don't want that aimed at you, _leave!_ "

The trio flew out of the room at record speeds. Rabbit hovered over to the chameleon, painlessly curled an ear around him, and soared out of sight. Metal was left alone with the two dead weights.

He had half the mind to just leave them where they were and go find the _other_ sneaky chameleon, but then the plan would be in more jeopardy than it already was. If the two hedgehogs were rescued, then their chance of success would decrease about twenty percent. He couldn't allow that.

Sucking it up, Metal Sonic grabbed his meddlesome copy and the Ultimate Lifeform by the scruff of their necks and zoomed out of the painted room.

A handful of minutes passed before he turned onto the hall that contained the closet he was looking for. He noticed that the door was open, and he assumed that Espio had just forgotten to close it again after retrieving the captives.

His assumption was wrong.

The door had been _broken down_ , and by the time he realized that, it was too late.

Metal only caught a glimpse of something white and black within the narrow space before he felt himself being hurled backwards, the rodents being ripped out of his grip as well. The robot bounced against the floor once and then remained in the air, having stabilizing himself.

He trained his red opticals in the direction of his assailant. Or to be more precise, _assailants_.

There were two white hedgehogs…two Silvers. One psychic had his palm facing the Metal Sonic, baring his teeth and radiating hatred. The other was completely ignoring him, appalled at the conditions of the two speedsters laying at their feet. He was probably the one who had torn them out of Metal's grip while the more aggressive one had shoved him away.

There was a third newcomer as well, nearly identical to the bleeding Ultimate Lifeform on the ground. Penumbra was crouched low, his sharp dark irises glaring at Metal. Snarls escaped his mouth as he moved over Sonic and Shadow.

It was when Penumbra touched the two downed rodents and when the two psychics huddled closer to them that Metal knew he was on a _very_ short timer. The robot activated his boosters and beelined straight for the small group. They couldn't get away. He _refused_ to let another get away.

There was a bright light, and Metal's fist hit nothing but a resistant wall.

The mech just stared, frozen, but then he punched the tough surface again and again until there was a deep enough dent in it. He pulled back with his hands clenched at his sides. He had to find them. They could possibly be anywhere, and that was the problem. However…it would be idiotic of them to teleport somewhere in the base. They had to be outside.

Metal whirled his head in the direction of the exit. Psy, Bat, and Omega were ordered to kill whoever they saw. He had to get to his copy first.

Resolve set, the robot took off.

* * *

There was no proper conversation after the two groups left. The only words produced had been by the pair of kits, who had both been looking at the radar and giving directions when it was needed. Tails had gone silent however, and the ones that noticed figured that Silver's group had made it to their destination.

Boom wasn't one of those people. He was too busy eying Boar with his arms crossed and foot tapping. The hedgehog wished that the bot was a pile of scraps – and that he was the one to make that happen – but he fully realized that having the mech on their side would…help their situation.

Boom felt sick just _thinking_ that.

And he could bet anything that he wasn't the only one who felt that way. The others were giving the red and black replica wary glances, Boar himself either not detecting them or not caring. He was staring at the shallow waves below.

Eggman was the only one not keeping an eye on the mech, for the doctor was barely keeping himself awake. The human had sat down and was fighting exhaustion. Boom didn't feel any type of sympathy – it was the doctor's own damn fault for letting the chameleon get close in the first place – he just added another thing on the list to hate that jackass.

The blue hedgehog returned his keen gaze to Boar, and he narrowed his eyes. The robot was slightly leaning over the edge now, like he was looking at a specific something in the distance. Boom zipped over to the ledge beside Boar. "What in the hell do you-" His breath hitched when he spotted a clump of bots by the entrance of the base. There was a white one, a winged one, and…and the other _Omega_. Boom let loose a guttural growl before snapping his attention to Boar. "You weren't going to effing tell us?!"

There was a gleam in those carmine opticals that the azure Mobian didn't like. "What? You don't like surprises?"

Boom turned away before he did something he regretted. The trio of mechs had flown apart now, most likely searching for them. The speedster backed away from the edge and saw that everyone was curiously staring at him and Boar.

"What's going on, man?" Rogue questioned.

"Psy, Bat, and Omega are down there," Blaze, who had investigated as well, answered lowly.

"And those shits are probably flying around to get _us_ ," Boom whispered, "So if everybody shuts _up_ , then we won't be found." Even though his nature was telling him to go down and fight, he knew that would do nothing but make things ten times as difficult.

"But…they'll find us eventually, won't they?" Rosy had more than a hint of worry in her voice.

"Hopefully we'll have Sonic and Shadow by then…" Tails commented optimistically, "And the second group would have shut down the Master Emerald so we can actually damage them."

VC ran a hand down his face. "I _really_ don't like this."

"It doesn't _matter_ if you like it or not, handbag," Boom spat, his nerves growing worse by the second, "Because it's _happening._ "

Before the croc could say anything about the nickname, a bright light filled their retinas. It was gone after a millisecond, and in its place were five hedgehogs. Three were standing, and two were laying limp on the ground.

Boom couldn't help but to gasp at the state of Shadow and Sonic. They were both in horrid condition with broken bones and burns and bruises. What…What did that fucked up chameleon _do_ to them?

"Oh Chaos!" Rosy covered her mouth in horror as everyone – sans Eggman and Boar – gathered around them.

"Sonic!" Amy quietly cried out before kneeling by the unconscious hero. "Shadow!" She scanned both of them as tears formed in her eyes. "What…happened?"

"We don't know…" Silver breathed out. "We just saw Metal Sonic bringing them back to the room."

"Jeez…" Rogue seemed physically ill. "That looks worse than how we had it…right Silv?"

"Unfortunately for them, yeah." Grey swallowed thickly before pointing at the duo. "Penumbra, heal them."

"And do it quick too," Blaze added, gazing around before focusing on the scene in front of her. Her expression was one of concern and of anxiety. "The evil Omega, Bat, and Psy are out here looking for us," she informed the psychics. Silver gritted his teeth, and Grey pulled at his ears.

"Just great!" the latter whined.

"Hurry up!" Boom barked at Penumbra when the hedgie hesitated. "Heal them!"

Nummy seemed distressed, examining both of their bodies. It was like he didn't even know where to start. "Where?" he asked.

"Start with the worst first," Vector provided, biting his lower lip. "The broken bones."

Penumbra leaned over to begin working on Shadow's bent arm, but a voice stopped him. "Wait!" It was Eggman by the edge, more awake at this new development. He was trying to conceal his worry, but it wasn't working. "You have to set the bones first! Otherwise…"

"They'll heal wrong!" Tails hovered out of the Tornado and sat by Sonic, on the verge of breaking down. The kit gently grabbed the hero's broken leg. "S-Someone help me with this!" Amy, eager to help, positioned herself. By Shadow, Rogue had taken hold of the striped Mobian's arm. Tails counted down. "O-Okay, three…two…one!"

Disguising snaps filled the air.

Ruby and emerald eyes flew open.

The two speedsters shot up from their laying positions simultaneously, groaning in unison.

Red orbs darted all around at the people surrounding him, and the striped hedgehog marginally relaxed when he didn't see any threats. He was safe. He was in agony _everywhere_ , but he was safe. Shadow gave Sonic a sidelong glance to notice how immensely relieved the hero was. The blue Mobian was attempting to smile, but it came out as a pained grimace instead.

"Sonic! Shadow!" Silver gained both of their attentions, and Shadow creased his brow at the sight of him and _another_ Silver standing beside him. Was that…the Silver they knew before? The time traveler? Why was he here…with Blaze?

"What…?" he inquired, perplexed.

"It's a long story," Silver provided before changing the topic up, "What did they do to you?"

"Doesn't…" Shadow's voice cracked, and every word – every _breath_ – pained him. "…matter. Need to…" He felt chaotic energy emitting from Penumbra. Or more specifically, Penumbra's quills. He mentally locked onto that Chaos emerald, and began the process of painstakingly healing his internal injuries.

"It does matter!" Amy refuted, "We have to know so they can pay!" She faced the azure hero. "Sonic? What happened?"

Sonic slowly shook his head, his lips pressed in a thin line. When he caught Shadow's dull gaze, the Ultimate Lifeform informed the rest. "He…can't talk…" Sonic subtly nodded when the shocked others focused on him. Shadow continued, "Tribute to…Mephiles…"

Boom resisted cursing loudly at the sky. He was literally _two_ seconds from exploding. What kind of effed up _shit_ was that!?

Vector violently stomped the ground. "Now that's just messed up! Forget his leg, heal his throat first!"

At that, Penumbra directed his hands toward Sonic's neck, but the hero shook his head frantically before gesturing down at his severely broken leg. Nummy gave him an odd look, but placed his palms on the speedster's thigh anyway.

Blaze sighed. "Should've expected that."

"So where's…" Shadow took a steadying breath. "The others…?"

"Knuckles, Red, Espio, and Roo went in the base to shut down the Master Emerald, bro." Rogue enlightened him before tensely rubbing the back of his neck. "Oh and uh…we just found out that the evil Omega, Psy, and Bat are out here searchin' for us."

Both Shadow and Sonic stiffened in alarm. "Dammit…" the former hissed, trembling in pain and anger. "We have…to hurry then…so-"

"Hey you four down there! The people you're looking for are up here!"

A person could hear a pin drop.

It was silent when the group swiveled their necks in Boar's and Eggman's direction. The Penumbra look-a-like was waving at something down below. They could all guess what.

"No…" Grey was panicking. "No no no no no!"

Boom sped to the ledge, wishing that the damned robot was just pulling their legs. There was no one down there. Boar wasn't speaking to anyone.

His wish didn't come true. When he peered over, his heart skipped a beat at the sight of Omega, Bat, Psy, and _Metal Sonic_ gathered by the entrance of the underwater base. They were all staring back up at him.

If looks could kill, Boar would have been a melted puddle of goo.

"What?" the mech asked innocently, shrugging his shoulders, "I was bored."

* * *

 **No one likes a snitch, Boar.**

 **Next chapter…here they come!**


	39. Chapter 39

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.**

 **A/N- Whew, it's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry guys! It was just basically school, school, and more school. But now, the uploads should be more regular (to trust me, or not to trust me, that's the question). So…yeah, that's pretty much all I have to say. Enjoy reading!**

 **Chapter 39- Under pressure**

" _Do y-you know where you a-are?"_

"Yes. Your guidance isn't needed anymore, but thank you anyway TT."

" _Okay. And y-you're welcome."_

Espio released the button on the communicator before slipping the device into his glove. The ninja scanned his surroundings, finding the hallway he had just entered familiar. Yes, all of the halls of the underwater base seemed similar, but he recognized it anyway. TT wasn't needed anymore because the room holding the Master Emerald was close. Very close.

The ninja peered over his shoulder at the trio trailing him. Rouge was airborne, her wings soundlessly beating as to not give her location away to any unwanted listener. Knuckles and Red had stilled when Espio did. Both echidnas were tense, one looking at the chameleon and the other gazing out the nearest window, soaking up his first experience down in an underwater base with a subtle frown.

"We're closing in on the room," Espio muttered, his whisper just loud enough to be heard by his accomplices, "Do you two feel the Master Emerald in this direction?" It was fully possible that the green gem had already been moved, and they had to plan accordingly if that was the case.

"Yeah," the pair chorused just as silently. The red Mobians glanced at each other before Red continued, "I don't think they've gotten to – or wanted to get to – it yet."

"Which is all the reason to keep moving." Knuckles clenched his fists, itching to reunite with his charge and take care of their little robot problem. And then there was a specific chameleon's face that he would _love_ to rearrange.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." Rouge's lips twisted downwards at the edges. "If any one of them touches my precious again, they will experience a woman's wrath."

Espio nodded. "They'll experience that and more. Let's continue." He bobbed his head down the empty hall, and the small group resumed their trek through the structure, footfalls as soft as they could make them.

As the purple reptile led, he was on high alert. Metal Sonic could be anywhere, lurking these halls. Or any of the enemy, for that matter. When the image of his corrupted double popped up in his mind, his jaw clenched and he pushed himself to quicken his pace.

It wasn't long before they turned a corner, and Espio's muscles marginally relaxed when he saw the closed doors at the end of the hallway that were surely hiding the Master Emerald. However, he couldn't let his guard down. Anyone could be in there.

Knuckles instantly over took him in running to the automatic doors, the echidna feeling the intense pull of the emerald's chaotic energy. Rouge sped up to be at the echidna's side as well, just as anxious as the guardian to see the large jewel again.

"Wait."

Espio paused in his step at the muttered voice that came from behind him. Knuckles and Rouge stopped progressing as well, the former annoyed that his reunion was being put off. Three pairs of eyes were now on Red, whose brow was creased.

"What?" Knuckles quietly bit, "What is-"

"Do you feel that?"

" _Yes_ , and it's called the Master Emerald. So let's-"

Red shot his twin an exasperated look. "Really? So the source of energy that's approaching us at high speeds is the Master Emerald? No need to worry then."

Knuckles was about to give a snappy retort back, but then he sensed it too. He had been so focused on the main jewel that the smaller source gaining on them had slipped under his radar. It had to be one of those robots. "Dammit," the guardian hissed, shifting his focus from Red to behind his doppelganger.

Espio wasn't even surprised that this was happening. Getting to the Master Emerald without any problems would have been too good to be true. Thoughts whirled as he came up with an impromptu plan. He focused on the echidnas. "You two get to the emerald. Rouge and I will hold the robot off for as long as we can."

"You two better hurry up, sugars." Rouge withheld a wince when she remembered her first encounter with one of those powered-up bots. That twisted ankle wasn't pleasant, but if they shut down the gem in time, then the chances of anything breaking would decrease drastically. The bat then shooed the red Mobians off. "As much as I hate to say it, the jewel has to lose its beauty soon."

Knuckles rolled his eyes at her before glimpsing at Red, who hadn't moved from his spot yet. "What in the world are you doing? Don't just stand there!"

Red simply shook his head, turning to face the way they came, hesitant to actually peek around the corner. His whole body was tense. "We won't make it there. Whoever's coming is too fast and too close. They can't know that we're here, so we can use the surprise-" The echidna cut himself off at the sound of footsteps, and he glanced back to see Knuckles gunning it for the shut doors. A quiet sigh escaped his lips.

He then gave his attention to Rouge and Espio, about to advise to get ready for anything, but the expressions on their faces made all words die in his throat. They were gazing beyond him, and Red just realized that the source wasn't moving anymore. It had stopped. It was close. It was _there_.

"Look what we have here."

Knuckles paused in his stride at that voice. It was so familiar to him, since he has heard it many times before. However… _However_ , the one who was talking wasn't the Espio he had been friends with for some time now. No. That was the voice of a killer.

The guardian swiftly turned on his heel, ignoring the doors that were a handful of steps ahead of him. His violet gaze disregarded his doppelganger, Rouge, and Espio as he glared at the speaker and other source of chaotic energy.

The twisted purple chameleon was held in the air, wrapped loosely and comfortably in one of what Knuckles could only assume was Rabbit's elongated ears. The mechanical bunny was floating as she examined all who were present. Knuckles scowled when her gaze landed on him, instantly reminded of what Espio had said about her attacks. _Beware of her ears, and her dammed bat…_

Red had backpedaled a few steps at the sight of Rabbit, her appearance bringing up memories over another particular bunny. His teeth ground together, and he was surprised that they didn't shatter. Of _course_ that reptile would model a robot after her. Just to spite them. There was no other reason.

The echidna switched his focus from Rabbit to the Mobian in charge of her when the reptile started again with an irritating grin on his face. "Well, isn't this a sight. You're here earlier than expected. I applaud you for th-" The slight wane of that grating smirk was subtle, but it was still there. "Rabbit, I don't like that echidna being so close to those doors. Fix that, will you?"

The trio closest to the enemy all hastily ducked when the bot zoomed right over their heads, careening right toward Knuckles.

Said Mobian quickly shifted his weight, clenching his namesakes. He watched with narrowed eyes as Rabbit raised her weapon. He knew that he had to wait for the right time to dodge so he could successfully counter and show that he was no way intimidated by the chameleon or any of his stupid toys.

When the bunny got close enough, Knuckles anticipated the swing and hopped to the side, the weapon barely grazing is chest. Growling, the echidna reared back a fist and was about to demolish, but something crashed painfully into his side. Knuckles cried out as he was harshly swatted away from the doors, in the direction of the rest of his group.

He landed hard with a thud, rolling until he eventually came to a stop. Knuckles grunted when he sat up on his knees, holding his abused side. The guardian scowled at Rabbit as she placed that menace on the ground. He then blinked when a hand was held out for him.

After helping Knuckles back up onto his feet, Rouge glanced at the forming bruise in slight worry before returning her focus on the enemies. "We have to be more careful hon. It's basically like she has two extra arms to deal damage."

"Yeah." A glower marred his muzzle. "I've noticed."

"I like this arrangement much better." The evil Espio stared at the heroic group as they all stared back at him. "Now let's see…" He gazed between Red and Knuckles. "We have two echidnas here, and I'm a little put out because the one I've known isn't the one with the growing bruise." The chameleon addressed Red. "Would you like a matching one, inept guardian? Because it wouldn't be hard."

Red's expression was nowhere near friendly. "You're not going to win here, Espio. I'm-"

"You? Well that's a surprise Knuckles." The wicked reptile's chuckle was void of mirth. "You're actually going to do something this time. Think about this though, if you had guarded the emerald in the first place, maybe you wouldn't be in this mess." Red's violet irises hardened, that being his only response to that taunt.

"But then again…" The chameleon tapped his chin as he grinned over at Knuckles. "Maybe it would've ended up the same. Because this one here was _trying_ to protect it and he fell short. If it wasn't for those hedgehogs…"

"Shut _up!_ " Knuckles snarled, taking a threatening step forward. He was starting to see red. "You're nothing but a monster, and I'm going to make sure that you never use your legs again!"

The reptile tilted his head a bit, but his arrogant expression didn't change. He whistled lowly. "What a temper." He locked gazes with Red again. "Quite the ying yang situation here, isn't it?"

"Didn't I tell you to shut up? Your voice is ticking me off!"

Rouge put a hand on the guardian's shoulder before he could make any rash decisions, wanting to keep any potential damage to their team to a minimum. "Calm down," she advised, "You tend to go a little brain dead when you're angry hon. You can't let that happen now." Normally, Knuckles would've called her out on that phrasing, but this wasn't a normal situation. Reluctantly, he reeled himself back in.

"Aren't you an interesting sight." Rouge frowned when that amber orb trained on her. "Not exactly what I expected Rogue's counterpart to be."

She put a hand on her hip and scoffed. "Well, isn't that a shame. Because you're _exactly_ what I expected a sadistic murderer to be like."

He snorted. "There's no need for those derogatory labels. That Chao was just at the wrong place at the wrong time, and well, Mephiles had gotten too bold. He needed to be punished." The chameleon then smiled smugly. "Also, you should be _happy_ that I held up my end of the bargain and didn't kill Rogue and Silver. Do I not get any credit for that?"

"I'll be happy when you get sent somewhere where you'll never see the light of day again." Rouge gave her own lopsided grin. "And you will. I'll make sure of it."

There was a snicker; however, the corrupted chameleon didn't say anything else. Instead, he surprised everyone watching when he suddenly spun around, sweeping his foot out. Eyes widened when there was a thud, and when their Espio flickered into sight, sprawled out on the floor. He was clearly dazed and confused.

"What…?" Red questioned, not knowing that Espio had been missing until now. "When did he-?"

"Who knows and who cares. That's not the issue right now," Knuckles growled, watching as Espio's mirror image produced a kunai and held it up to the downed chameleon's throat. And what made it worse was that he knew that he couldn't do anything that wouldn't put Espio's life in severe danger while he was in that position.

Rouge gasped in alarm, her whole frame stilling.

Espio was in the same condition, completely frozen as he became trapped between the hard floor and the weapon pressed against his jugular. He had thought that he could sneak up on his twin as he was having his conversation with the others. When he had gotten close enough, he would've been able to knock his doppelganger out. Then, the only thing they would have to worry about was Rabbit.

Unfortunately, that didn't come to be.

His double sneered down at him. "Did you really think that I didn't notice the _second_ you disappeared? You're not as sly as you think, chameleon." Espio sucked in a breath when the blade broke skin, feeling a bead of blood travel down his neck. He brought up his hands to push the other away, but the increased pressure locked up his muscles.

"I underestimated you," Espio said, his voice a borderline hiss. He was reckless. He took a risk, and now…

"Yes. Yes you did." His twin then focused on the bandages wrapped around his head. The evil one tisked. "It was smart, posing as me. I wouldn't have thought that Metal would be so oblivious, but you learn new things every day." Using his other hand, the double gripped his wrappings. "However, you don't need them anymore."

Espio didn't dare do anything when they were not-so-gently ripped away; he simply observed as the other figured out that the bandages weren't only a disguise. The two reptiles were similar, more than Espio liked.

He was silent as his mirror laughed lowly. He was _glad_ that this new discovery was so entertaining. "Wow," the evil Espio commented, peering at the less functional side of his face, "So what happened to your eye, other me? Because I had nothing to do with this, which is a shame, really."

Espio kept that painful memory at bay. "You had plenty to do with it."

"Are you sure?" His smile was malicious. He was soaking all of this up like a sponge. "Because the last time I saw you was at the trade-off, and you had…" The twin paused, and his lips curled up even more. "Tell me…Was it Penumbra, Silver, or Rogue?" When Espio refused to answer, sending the other heated glares instead, the kunai bit more into his skin. He sucked in a harsh breath at the pain. He and his double were almost nose-to-nose now, and the other's voice got eerily quiet. "Answer me when I'm talking to you."

"Just let him go!" Both chameleons turned their attentions to Red, who desperately wanted all of this to end. "He's not who you started any of this with! Neither is Rouge or the other me! Leave them out of it!"

The corrupted reptile huffed. "It's a bit too late to start playing it like that, echidna. They got involved, so they will face the consequences."

"You're saying that like they're in the _wrong_ for acting when you stole their friend and killed her pet!" Red reasoned, "Just-"

"No," the wicked Mobian interrupted him with a nasty gleam in his eye. He then refocused on Espio. "So who did it?"

Espio swallowed thickly, feeling the weapon slightly pressing down. "Rogue. Rogue did it. But does that matter?"

His twin tuned out his question altogether. "Not who I was expecting, but I'm not surprised. That bat was crazy enough to get revenge on the wrong chameleon." He snorted. "Wish I could've been there. I'll have to thank him when I get the chance."

"If he doesn't kill you first," Espio rasped.

The other didn't verbally respond, instead just forcing him up to his feet. The blade never left his throat. The double then addressed the trio looking on. "Now, this is how this is going to go. I'm going to drag my little twin here into that room." He bobbed his head in the direction of the doors hiding the Master Emerald. "And Rabbit here is going to keep all of you _very_ busy. Understand. Good."

Knuckles' gut dropped as that dammed reptile led Espio toward the room. "I _swear_ if you kill him, I'll-"

"I won't kill him. Yet." The automatic doors slid open, and the contained Master Emerald was revealed for all to see. Knuckles could _feel_ his blood boiling. However, in addition to the green gem, a good handful of generic bots were flittering around the room as well. The enemy reptile smirked. "Those bots in there will just hold him until I…get dressed."

The doors closed again, and the chameleons were gone.

"Get dressed? What does that mean?" Red asked aloud to himself.

"Well." The echidna gazed at Rouge when she clicked her tongue in agitation. "He sure is a character." She turned towards Red. "And you had to deal with him way _before_ we had to."

"Yeah." Red stressfully rubbed his forehead. "It wasn't pleasant, to put it lightly."

"I just can't _wait_ to wring his little neck!" Knuckles made the motions with his hands before staring at the robot just looking at them, guarding the entrance to the room. "But we have to get through _her_ first." _Please be fine back there, Espio. We're coming._

"So what's the plan?" Rouge muttered as she looked at the waiting bot across the way, who was reflecting blue light that was cast upon her by the shifting waves outside. The winged Mobian then addressed Knuckles. "I think we should-"

"I'll take her on alone," Red didn't waver when both his twin and Rouge stared at him in slight surprise, "and you two make a beeline to the room."

"Alone?" Rouge blinked, her brow arching. "Now you're starting to sound like Blue's little twin."

"Your friend could be dying right now." Red wasn't going to entertain any arguments. He didn't trust that twisted chameleon for a second. Espio's blood could be spilling this very moment, and they had to do something about that robot to get inside.

Knuckles eventually nodded. His other self sounded sure about his plan, and Knuckles knew that no one could sway a determined echidna. That was at least _one_ good trait his double seemed to have. "Fine. Just-"

His words died off when a robotic voice echoed off the walls. "You're not immediately attacking like those hedgehogs did. I don't know what to make of that." Rabbit tossed her bat up into the air – it flipping end-over-end – before catching it again and propping it against her metallic shoulder. "You're either really smart, or even easier to take out than those two."

"Those two…?" Steely amethysts narrowed into slits. "So Espio was right… You took Sonic and Shadow!"

Rouge drummed her fingers against her side, giving this bite-sized threat a once over. "She won that fight by herself…"

"And?" Knuckles countered, sensing the subtle hesitance in her voice. "She had to have taken them by surprise or something, because there is _no_ way that Sonic would lose to this heap of metal. Let alone him _and_ Shadow."

Red didn't know if he could agree with his twin or not. Sure, it was one thing that both of those hedgehogs were seasoned fighters, but it was another that the bunny was powered up to the max. This could be extremely messy.

"Does it matter _how_ I did it?" Rabbit shrugged before tightening her grip on her weapon. The action wasn't lost on the observing trio. "What matters is that they both struck out pretty fast. Now…I get to see if any of you actually got game."

Red didn't respond to her. Instead, he uttered to his companions, "Let's go," before pushing off the ground and rushing toward the bunny. His fists were clenching at his sides, them ready to swing. Knuckles and Rouge were on either side of him, acting like they were going to be part of the fight as well.

Red kept himself light on his toes, waiting for any move the robot could make as he got closer. He was right to do so, because that baseball bat was suddenly hurled in his direction. He sucked in a harsh breath as he swiftly ducked down, the weapon whizzing over his head too close for comfort.

"Ha!" Knuckles barked out after seeing the bot miss. The trio were close to closing the distance now, him preparing himself to maneuver around the adversary at the last second. "You really expect to win against us? With aim like that?"

Rabbit's arm was still held out. "My aim was perfect actually, you're just too dumb to see that."

A tick grew on Knuckles' forehead. "Dumb?! _You-_ "

Rouge ignored the echidna's irate voice as she thought about the bunny's words, flapping her wings to stay airborne. Rabbit had said that she hadn't missed, but… The bat glanced over her shoulder to see where the bat landed only to have her heart skip a beat in utter shock. She parted her lips to warn Red, but it happened before any sounds escaped her mouth.

The baseball bat – that Rabbit was somehow recalling back to her – slammed against the guardian's back at a devastating speed.

She didn't know what was worse, the sickening crack that followed, or Red's haunting scream.

That had definitely made all of Knuckles' retorts trail off, both him and Rouge freezing and watching in horror as the weapon's momentum caused the other echidna to flip head-over-heels and crash hard into the floor, face down as he slid right up to Rabbit's feet.

He wasn't moving.

"Oh _Chaos_." Rouge could hardly breathe, her throat constricting at the sight. He couldn't be dead. She refused to believe that. But…she heard his spine _snapping_. She immediately thought about the rest of the doubles. Did they really just…lose another…?

"Red…" Knuckles' breaths grew shallow when he didn't get any response from his double. "Dammit Knuckles! Say something! Get up! _Move_ for Chaos' sake!" There was nothing. Disregarding the armed robot and the fear taking hold in his chest, the guardian took a step forward. "Stop being _lazy_ and-!"

"Don't come closer." The guardian's muscles tensed when a high-pitched hum filled the air, the noise emitting from Rabbit's ears. Sparks of static occasionally jumped from those abiotic appendages. One of them stretched down and hovered a couple of inches over Red's head. "Or he dies, if he isn't already dead."

"He's not dead!" Knuckles shouted, not wanting to believe it, but the truth was staring him right in the face.

Rabbit stared at the standing echidna dispassionately before training her gaze down at the one in front of her. Using the tip of her sporty weapon, she pushed Red's head to the side so that his left cheek was contacting the ground. He was facing Rouge now, blood dripping out of his open mouth. His eyes were open and still, but they weren't dead. _He_ wasn't dead.

A huge weight lifted itself off of Rouge's chest when his cloudy stare slowly focused on her. She couldn't get too relieved however. Red still wasn't moving, and he had to be in _extreme_ pain.

Rabbit let out a mechanical scoff. "No home run, huh? Tougher than you look."

"Get away from him!" Knuckles ordered. The only thing keeping him from going over and punching that mech's face in was the bunny's very obvious threat.

"Or what?" Rabbit retorted easily.

A snarl rumbled Knuckles' chest as he bit his lip. He couldn't do _anything_. One wrong move – or any move at all – and Red was done for. The echidna then gave the closed doors a sidelong glance. _But if we just stay here, Espio could be in major trouble too. But if we make a break for it, there's no guarantee-_

"Red, sugar." Rouge was focused on nothing but the gravely injured Mobian. "Can you do anything? Like push her away or stand up or…"

She trailed off, and after a moment, Red took in shuddering breath. "…Hurts…" He sounded weak. Too weak. "…C-Can't…legs…won't m-move…" Paralysis was the first thing to pop into Knuckles' and Rouge's minds. His back was broken, and…and only _he_ knew the extent of the damage. Red coughed, and carmine liquid splattered on the reflective tile.

Before the bleeding mammal could muster any more energy to communicate, the automatic doors glided open, and all eyes were on the being that emerged.

And at that moment, both Knuckles and Rouge knew exactly what the corrupted reptile meant when he said 'get dressed'.

The purple Mobian was armored from head to toe, the metal slick and possibly holding many deadly secrets. A single amber iris was peering through thick glass that was part of his helmet, it absorbing the scene as its owner floated into the hall. He wasn't alone however. Espio was held tightly in front of the twisted chameleon with that same kunai from before dangerously close to his neck. He wasn't struggling.

Knuckles didn't know what to feel upon seeing them. On one hand, he was relieved to see that Espio was alive, but on the other, he was still held hostage. And what made this even _worse_ was the energy he felt emitting from that metallic suit.

Something about his expression must've tipped Rouge off, because she swallowed thickly and pleaded, " _Please_ don't tell me…"

A deep scowl marred Knuckles' muzzle. "He's the same as those _stupid_ robots of his."

"Now there's no need for name calling," the suited reptile jeered, his voice just slightly muffled, "Especially when the robot is smart enough to do her job." He then drifted his attention over to Red, who hadn't moved a muscle. The chameleon's pleased grin was hard to miss. "A lot happened while I was busy, didn't it?"

"What…" Espio lifted his chin to attempt to put distance between him and the blade, but it was all for naught. There was no way he could escape without risking his life, but…that wasn't the most important thing right now. He was looking at Red laying still on the ground with blood leaking out of him. "What happened to-"

"I broke his back, and he's paralyzed now," Rabbit stated bluntly, not pulling any punches.

While Espio was stunned into silence, his twin snorted in amusement. "That's one way to do it." The floating double then turned away from them. "Well, it's time for me to go."

"Go?" Knuckles sneered. "What? Are you too _scared_ to fight us?"

The armored reptile scoffed. "Don't flatter yourself. I'm going where I'm most needed because it's _obvious_ that I'm not needed here," he said, giving Red a pointed look. "Rabbit's handling it just fine, and plus-" He readjusted Espio in his arms. Something sinister filtered into his tone. "-I need a proper audience to witness what I'm about to do."

The meaning of that sentence wasn't hard to comprehend.

Rouge heard Espio swallow audibly, and she glared hard at the enemy even though she was mentally questioning: _How does he know?_ "If you _think_ that they will let you kill them-"

"Let me? I don't need their _permission_ to do anything," the double countered right back.

Knuckles didn't – couldn't – say anything as he stared at his friend. Espio stared back at him, his single eye wide and swirling with many emotions. One phrase echoed around in the guardian's mind. _He was going to die. He was going to die. He was going to-_

"Don't worry about me," Espio barely managed to get out. His gaze flickered over to Red for a split second. "Worry about him."

Did Espio _really_ expect him to do that? "You're telling me not to worry about you?! That's…"

"…Impossible. I know."

Knuckles jabbed a finger in the detective's direction, mentally ousting any possibility of Espio not making it. "You _better_ still be kicking when we resurface or else-!"

"Or else what?" The evil twin snickered. "Nothing, because your corpse will never leave this place." He focused on his robot. "Rabbit, finish them off, but make sure that Red there is the last to go. Let him watch. Gotta love the icing on the cake."

The bunny nodded. "That'll be easy enough."

"Alright, I'm off." The twin glanced between a seething Knuckles and a highly concerned Rouge. "Don't follow me, or my hand might slip." With those lasting words, he took off, him and Espio disappearing from sight.

Knuckles let his stare linger, and Rouge was having none of that. "Honey." Amethysts locked with determined teals. "He'll be fine. You have to be _here_ right now."

"…Right." The red mammal mentally chastised himself as he gave Rabbit his full attention. He couldn't get distracted. Not if they wanted to make it out alive.

Rouge eyed the bunny as the bot stepped around Red, getting ready for anything. "So do you want to make the first move, or should we?"

"Considering what happened after I attacked first…" Rabbit nudged Red's calf with her foot, and he didn't even respond. "…I should make the same play again."

With little warning, she heaved her sporty weapon right at Knuckles' head. The guardian agilely sidestepped the projectile, careful to not follow in Red's footsteps. However, Rabbit didn't call it back this time. Instead, she activated her boosters and darted for the echidna.

Her ears were raised like tentacles, reaching to grab and coil. Knuckles shifted his weight to the balls of his feet, getting ready to jump over the mech and deliver a surprise blow. He never made it off the ground, for a foot smashed into the side of Rabbit's face, causing her to careen to the left and slam into the nearby wall.

Rouge hissed under her breath as she lowered her leg. "Gotta make sure that I hit those at a right angle. Getting another twisted ankle is the _last_ thing I need."

Knuckles nodded at her. "Can't have you hurt, bat-girl. We're already down tw-" He didn't get to finish his sentence. Like a whip, an electrified ear cracked against one of Rouge's cheeks, causing her to launch backwards with a pained yell. "Rouge!" She was flung away from him, landing hard on the floor by a wide-eyed Red. There was an angry red burn where she was struck, and rage instantly flowed through Knuckles' veins.

His hands instinctively flew out and grabbed the elongated appendage, him not thinking that it was probably electrified. To his luck, it wasn't. Not giving Rabbit a chance to process, the guardian spun on his heel with a grunt, hurling the bunny back down the hallway. She tumbled in the air before righting herself and gathering her weapon that she had previously discarded.

"Well then." Rabbit hummed. "This actually might be a fun game."

"Just shut up," Knuckles growled, sprinting towards his target with his fists raised.

Back closer to the doors, Rouge was lying on her back, refusing to let _one_ tear stream down her throbbing cheek. She was afraid to touch it, knowing that the amount of pain she was in would triple if she did so. _Chaos_ …but she couldn't dwell on this. She had to suck it up and help Knuckles before-

"D-Distract…her…" At that stuttering voice, Rouge craned her neck to notice jaded purple orbs. Every word seemed to pain him. "Take…her…away…I-I…" Sensing movement out of the corner of her eye, the bat glanced down and inwardly gasped at the twitching of the echidna's fingers. He could move his arms? Before she could ask, he whispered, "I can move…my upper half…I-I can get in…there. Distract h-her."

Rouge couldn't argue with that plan, since it was the only one they had besides fighting Rabbit for an undetermined amount of time. The bunny believed that Red couldn't move at all, so this could work.

"Be careful hon. In case you haven't noticed, you aren't in the best condition." she replied just as lowly, wincing when she heard a pained grunt from Knuckles. From the looks of it, the tip of Rabbit's bat had hit the same bruised side as before. It didn't slow the guardian down though, him ducking and dodging and struggling to find a window of opportunity to throw a punch.

There was barely any movement of Red's lips, but Rouge could tell it was an attempt at a grin. "G-Go."

She nodded before scrambling up onto her feet, her face continuing to sting. Ignoring that unpleasant sensation, the white Mobian flapped her wings, soaring in the direction of the feuding duo with a plan in mind.

Instead of going in and attacking Rabbit, she swooped down on a surprised Knuckles and lifted him into the air. She zoomed down the hall and turned the corner, leaving being both the Master Emerald and Red as Knuckles squirmed in her grip.

"Ack! What are you doing, you crazy bat?!" the guardian complained, "Put me down! We have to-"

"New plan," Rouge mumbled, peering over her shoulder to see Rabbit flying after them. Perfect. "Red can move. We have to led her away and distract her so he can go in and power down the big beauty."

Knuckles snapped his jaws shut, absorbing this new information. It was doable – pushing away the fact that _he_ wasn't the one going to handle the Master Emerald – and it would definitely help their situation…along with whatever was going on above ground. He really didn't want to think about it.

The red mammal then glanced back as well. Rabbit was closing in fast, her extended ears even faster. "Well how far do we have to go? We're losing ground here," he uncomfortably pointed out.

The G.U.N. agent smirked, the action causing her cheek to twinge. "Far enough to do…this!" She suddenly pulled up into the air and performed a backflip, flying backwards for a beat until Rabbit was right under them. The bat then used her momentum to launch Knuckles downwards. The bunny seemed to realize what was happening right when the echidna's feet landed on her back, sending her to the unforgiving floor.

Knuckles hopped off before she made an impact, landing softly with Rouge at his side. He glanced askance at her. "Thanks for the head's up."

The winged Mobian winked. "Any time."

"You two do realize…" Rabbit slowly picked herself up while dusting herself off. She half turned to face them again, red opticals flashing. "…that you're giving me even more reasons to knock you out of the park."

Knuckles just assumed that was a euphemism and didn't question it. "Even if we hadn't attacked you, you still would've tried to kill us for no reason!"

The bunny held her weapon with both hands, slightly crouching. "I have a reason."

Rouge gestured to the general area above them. "Just because that sadistic murderer of a chameleon told you to?"

"Like I said," Rabbit tightened her grip, "I have a reason."

Then she lunged.

* * *

Red's world was pain.

It wasn't the regular type of pain. It was the pain he wouldn't wish on his worst enemy. Well…his second worst enemy. His worst enemy deserved this and way more.

It seemed like any twitch of any muscle contributed to the agonizing discomfort radiating from his back. If he was any less of an echidna, he'd be wallowing in his own tears and blood right now. It hurt to move anything.

Luckily, he couldn't move legs no matter how hard he tried…

Dammit just… _dammit._

He couldn't just lay here and curse at the world however. He had a job to do, an important one at that. He had to go into that room and shut down the Master Emerald without the use of his legs. It was a good thing that he had incredible arm strength, or this would have been mission impossible.

Rabbit just left the premises, so it was time to go.

Red licked his lips as he shakily picked his head up, tasting nothing but copper. The echidna stifled more coughs as he propped himself up with trembling arms. It didn't matter how carefully he did it; it constantly felt like someone was driving nails into his spine with a sledgehammer.

The red Mobian attempted to get his legs to respond to him again, but there was not so much as a twitch. It didn't even matter if he could use them anyway. There was no _way_ he would be able to walk in this condition.

The lame mammal took a couple of deep breaths before putting one arm in front of the other and dragging his body forward. Red chomped down on his bottom lip as he did so to prevent the agonized shout from escaping his throat and potentially giving him away.

It's funny, because it wasn't that long ago that he was just lying in a peaceful field, soaking in the sun's rays. And then Shadow came and…

Red shook his head to get rid of those thoughts. This wasn't Shadow's fault. If there was anyone to blame, it was him. If he had just done his stupid boring job, Espio wouldn't have gotten his hands on the Master Emerald in the first place, he wouldn't be numb from the waist down, and people wouldn't have _died_.

He put his left arm in front of his right and pulled, ducking his head and enduring the intense pain.

There was no way of knowing that though. Even if he had been guarding the emerald, that chameleon just would've found another way to take it. Those deaths weren't on him. He couldn't…blame himself for those.

He slid a little further and further and further.

 _No one else blames me. So I can't start doing it now._

He triggered the motion sensor, and the automatic doors glided open. More coughs wracked his frame, and blood dribbled down his chin. It was safe to say that the blow had done something to his ribs too. It was just that pain paled in comparison to his back.

Dull violet irises first took in the Master Emerald at the opposite end of the room, it glowing brightly inside of its glass container. There was a machine under it with wires spread out all around, and that was no doubt how the reptile infused the chaotic energy.

The second thing he noticed was how factory-like the room was, and how he was now the center of attention. There was a multitude of generic robots filling the space, and all of them were staring at him. They could be a problem.

Red laid still for a moment, waiting to see if they would actually do something. They just stared. The echidna's gaze swept the room, and it seemed like none of the bots were armed. It didn't mean that they weren't dangerous though.

Keeping his eyes peeled, Red braced himself as he put one arm over the other and slid. The doors closed behind him. Apparently, that spurred the bots into action.

A couple of them stepped toward him with their hands out, and the echidna's heart pounded against his chest. He hadn't come this far just to get snatched up. But what could he do? He could barely move his own body weight, nevermind taking these guys on. He couldn't win this physically, however…

"S-Stop…" He breathed out, and they continued like they hadn't heard him. He desperately tried again. "Your Master…w-wouldn't like it if…you killed me." That seemed to do the trick. The mechs paused in their strides, glancing at each other before refocusing on the former guardian. They could understand him. That was great. "Y-You don't want to b-be…destroyed, do you…?"

That got them to back away from him. They were dumb. Even better. "I-I'm not…gah…" He harshly winced as he resumed his slow trek, the sledge now being replaced with a jackhammer. It was almost too much, but he couldn't stop now. "I'm not a…threat to y-you anyway." Which was true. Him shutting down the large gem wouldn't affect these bots...well, not directly.

Red felt all of the eyes on him, but he didn't pay them any mind. He just pushed himself forward, panting at the onslaught of pain bombarding his system. His legs were a dead weight, and it felt like he was being split apart.

He never took his gaze off of the Master Emerald, keeping his target in his sights. It was one of the main things keeping him going. That, and the fact that he didn't know exactly how Knuckles and Rouge were fairing with Rabbit. The bot hadn't come back for him yet, and that was a good sign, but there was still that worry in the back of his mind.

And then there were the others above ground. What was happening up there? The twisted reptile knew they were up there, and Red's group hadn't run into any robot besides Rabbit. So were they fighting? If so, then it was mandatory that Red completed his job.

It was time consuming and grueling, but Red finally made it to the machine. He inwardly cursed as he glanced up at the Master Emerald settled on top of the metal. He was too low to the ground; he couldn't get close to the gem like he knew he had to.

Red let out a shaky sigh. Nothing could go his way. Letting out a pained hiss, Red lifted his upper torso off the ground. His injury didn't like this new position at _all_. Red could feel the vertebrae rubbing together and causing tears to prick the corner of is eyes. He didn't even remember the last time he had cried.

Not bothering to wipe the water away, Red let his left arm bare all of his weight as he reached up for the top ledge of the machine. "Argh..." He groaned as he held on as tight as he could, having his left hand join the other. The echidna then pulled himself farther up, huffing when he was now face level with the cylinder. Red glanced down, noticing that he was holding up most of his body, his knees barely touching the ground.

Red turned back forward and gritted his teeth as he held out a hand, splaying his fingers out against the glass containing the jewel. This was as close as he was going to get.

He glanced around the room to make sure that the robots hadn't changed their minds. They were still watching him, but they hadn't approached.

Calming himself down as much as he could in his position, Red closed his eyes and connected with the powerful gem. _I guess you don't care which echidna does it, huh._ He felt the energy flowing out of the emerald, the gap caused by the glass not interfering with their interaction. _You're really not going to like what I'm about to ask to you do, but…_

Red's brow creased as he tried to get the gem to deactivate, but – surprise surprise – it was stubborn. It was basically a wall. He could understand why. It's unnatural for the Master to be shut down, and it most likely didn't want to lose control of the Chaos emeralds it had powered down.

"Come…o-on…" He struggled to press closer. _It's okay. We'll turn you back on as soon as possible. But we need you off right now. People are in trouble. People might…People might die if you don't let me…_ Red's supporting arm began to trembled from the strain, and the constant torture his back was putting him through made the shaking worse. He didn't notice when more tears escaped, he was paying more attention to the fact that he was on a timer.

 _Please…Just-_

Red's eyes flew open when something gave way, when the energy disappeared. His vision was slightly blurry, but he could clearly see that the emerald was dull, almost lifeless.

"I…" He almost couldn't believe it. A trembling smile grew on his wet muzzle. "I…did it." The robots would be vulnerable, Knuckles and Rouge would defeat Rabbit, they would be able to get out of here, he would…he would be healed. Thank _Chaos._

However, his moment on cloud nine was cut short when his drooping quills were grabbed, and he was yanked away from the Master Emerald. He cried out in shock, but then that cry morphed into a silent scream when he smashed into the floor. It hurt too much to produce any sound.

It felt like his spine had been ripped right out of him.

More blood was forced out of his mouth when a robot – different from the one that hurled him – stomped down on his chest. Deactivating the emerald must've solidified that he was the enemy.

Despite the pain that was overloading his abused brain, Red managed to croak out, "You're…h-holding me here…f-for him?" The echidna weakly snorted. "He's not…c-coming…back."

Then his vision cut to black.

* * *

"Gah!"

Knuckles' shout was guttural as his muscles failed, having just taken an electrified hit to the abdomen. He was in a crouching position, his teeth grinding together as static immobilized him. He couldn't do anything as Rouge soared straight through the air, smacking into the wall with a hiss.

Before she could recover, Rabbit was in her face, the baseball bat held horizontal against the agent's neck. Rouge gasped for air as the robot pushed, bringing her hands up to shove away the thing blocking her airway. She didn't have the strength to do it.

"I think it's time to end this game." The winged Mobian wheezed when Rabbit pushed even harder. "It's gone on for too long."

Knuckles couldn't help but to agree with her. His body was littered with burns and bruises, and while Rouge's wasn't visible, he knew that she was in the same condition. What made it worse was that Rabbit looked brand new. There were a few scuff marks, but there was no damage to show for the times the duo had gotten hits in.

He knew that Red was injured, but…this was getting hairy.

"Get away from her!" Knuckles ordered once he could control his legs again. He pushed off the floor and sprinted toward the bot, wary of those flexible appendages of hers. Rabbit gave him a sidelong glance before her ears shot forward like vipers ready to strike.

But then, they stopped.

Rouge was confused yet relieved when she got a little bit of breathing room. The bat was still on her neck, but Rabbit was too distracted to continue pushing. The winged Mobian was befuddled as she watched the bunny look down at herself, perplexed about something.

Rouge then fell to the floor when Knuckles punched Rabbit hard in her side. The bunny went sprawling. Rouge eyed the mech as she rubbed her bruised throat with a frown. After a second, teals drifted over to the echidna. "Did you…" She coughed. "…see that hon?"

"Yeah." There was an unexpected grin on his face. Knuckles gestured over to their wobbling opponent. "Do you see _that_?"

The white bat gave her attention to Rabbit, and her eyes widened at the sight of a dent in the bunny's side where the echidna made contact. He actually dealt _damage_. Her lips curled up as well. "He did it."

Knuckles rotated his sore shoulder. "It's time to turn the tables."

"What…?" Rabbit examined herself, her gaze sticking to the newly formed dent, before looking at the Mobian duo. "Why do I feel different? What did you two do to me?"

Rouge fixed any misplaced hairs, radiating smugness. " _We_ didn't do anything. Remember our little friend that you left behind?"

"He shut down the Master Emerald," Knuckles added on, cracking his namesakes, "So the energy that was keeping you from getting torn apart is no longer usable."

When this bit of information sank in for the robot, Rabbit glanced between the pair accusingly. "Cheating isn't moral."

"And killing us on command is?!" The echidna spat.

"We're just putting you on the same playing field as we are. There's no wrong in that, is there?" Rouge tilted her head in mock innocence.

Over the new development, Rabbit propped her weapon on her shoulder. "That's fair. It won't change the outcome. I'll still win two to zero."

"We'll see about that." Knuckles nodded at Rouge, and they rushed forward, planning to end this fight permanently.

Rabbit zoomed at them as well, ears darting out to grab. The heroic duo veered in opposite directions, just missing getting electrocuted. Seeing an opening, Knuckles went in to put another dent in the bunny's shiny outer shell. However, Rabbit had abruptly turned and swung her bat at him. The echidna jumped high over the swing.

Rabbit focused up at him, completely not expecting Rouge flying in and sniping one of her ears. The bunny violently stumbled as her appendage was ripped clean off, it flopping down a good distance away. The robot stared at it while reaching up to cover her exposed wires; it was like she couldn't fully comprehend what just happened.

This was a perfect chance as any. After landing, Knuckles launched and tightly gripped Rabbit's other ear. The guardian then planted his feet on the bot's shoulder and pulled. It was like yanking a deep rooted weed out of soil. More wires ripped and tore, and when the echidna hopped out of Rabbit's frantic reach, he had fully separated the annoyance from its owner.

Knuckles haughtily dropped it at his feet. "Still think that you're going to win, bunny?" _It seems like she was built all around the fact that she couldn't be damaged._ He inwardly snorted. _If every bot is like that, then that chameleon is stupider than I thought._

Rabbit stared at him for a moment before switching her focus to Rouge, who was watching her just as closely. The robot then found the tiled floor interesting. She shook her head. "No. It's clear that I'm not winning this one. But…" She glanced out of the nearest window, the arm holding the sporty weapon subtly twitching. Rouge caught the movement though, and she was quick to act. Rabbit held up her bat. "I don't care if this ends up in a tie."

The agent put everything she had in her kick; it went straight through the bot. The winged Mobian sucked in a sharp breath as the jagged metal cut into her boot and sliced her skin underneath. Rabbit's inner circuits were fried, but she still had enough energy and strength to hurl her weapon at the massive pane.

The piece of metal didn't break the glass – as it would've if the bunny had been at full power – but it sure left a crack.

That was quickly growing in size.

Rouge shook her foot out of Rabbit's now limp body. Her pulse was thudding loudly in her ears, panic setting in. "Knuckles!" she yelled, and said echidna tore his eyes off the fracturing window to look at her. "You run ahead! I'll go get Red before this thing shatters!"

The guardian looked ready to argue. "But-"

"No buts hon!" Rouge had already turned the way they had come. "I'm faster, we can come back for the Master Emerald later, and I'll be _fine_ , okay?"

Knuckles hesitantly swallowed the rest of his sentence. He nodded. "Just hurry up, bat-girl." He turned on his heel and sprinted in the opposite direction.

Rouge didn't bother watching him. She took off back down the hallway. She was flapping her spent wings hard, pushing herself to her limits. The agent was like a jet slicing through the air. She wanted nothing more but to save their friend and get out of the base alive.

After smoothly turning the corner, Rouge aimed for the closed doors, absently noticing the faint trail of blood leading inside. Those doors were quick to open. The white bat paused for a split second at what she saw inside.

There were a bunch of worker robots standing around, half of them gazing at her, half of them staring at the echidna held down on the floor. Rouge's heart stuttered when she zeroed in on the still mammal, and she was about to raise hell until she saw his chest rise and fall. He was alive.

Not bothering with words, she zoomed in and kicked the offending bot's head right off. She wasted no time in gathering Red up into her arms, careful not to jostle him too much. She didn't bother with the other mechs as she escaped. They'd be taken care of soon enough.

She did give one last look at the Master Emerald though, believing it still would be safe submerged. Returning to it would just be harder.

Pushing the fate of the gem to the back of her mind, she tightened her hold on Red and left the premises. She returned to Rabbit's limp body in under a minute. Rouge sped over the bunny and passed by the dangerously cracked glass.

She had barely put any distance between herself and window before it shattered under the pressure.

* * *

 **I try** _ **so**_ **hard not to be evil, but as you can tell, that didn't quite work out so well.**

 **Blame my evil fingers.**

 **Next chapter…battle royale?**


	40. Chapter 40

**Disclaimer- I don't own the Sonic the hedgehog characters…which is probably for the best to be honest.**

 **Chapter 40…**

" _Hey you four down there! The people you're looking for are up here!"_

 _A person could hear a pin drop._

 _It was silent when the group swiveled their necks in Boar's and Eggman's direction. The Penumbra look-a-like was waving at something down below. They could all guess what._

" _No…" Grey was panicking. "No no no no no!"_

 _Boom sped to the ledge, wishing that the damned robot was just pulling their legs. There was no one down there. Boar wasn't speaking to anyone._

 _His wish didn't come true. When he peered over, his heart skipped a beat at the sight of Omega, Bat, Psy, and_ _ **Metal Sonic**_ _gathered by the entrance of the underwater base. They were all staring back up at him._

 _If looks could kill, Boar would have been a melted puddle of goo._

" _What?" the mech asked innocently, shrugging his shoulders, "I was bored."_

… **Divide and conquer…?**

Rage and pain did not mix well. Both sent intense signals to the brain, overloading the poor organ until it malfunctioned. Simple actions such as producing words could become near impossible tasks.

Shadow knew this because he was experiencing an onslaught of both sensations at this very moment.

His quills were bristled as he struggled to form comprehensible words. He eventually succeeded, and he promptly erupted. "The doctor?" He spat out, not having noticed the human beforehand. He was instantly wary and ready to fight even though he was still in terrible condition. Blazing rubies then narrowed when they took in the red-striped robot by the edge who just gave their precious position away. "And…is that _Boar!?_ Why in the…" He paused to regain his breath. "… _hell_ are they up here with us?"

"Espio told us that they were on our side!" Rosy explained. Her tone had a note of hysteria to it.

The cuffed Ultimate Lifeform was going to explain to all of them – using a few choice words – that even if Maria had come back from the _dead_ and told him to trust the doctor and that quilled bot, he wouldn't have done so without solid damn _proof._

Shadow held his tongue though. The group of Mobians didn't deserve his ire, but a specific human sure as hell did. He sent the most heated glare he could muster to Eggman, a guttural snarl rumbling in his chest.

The scientist felt a cold sweat break out on his forehead. Eggman held his hands up innocently as he forced himself up onto his feet, his exhaustion causing him to wobble a bit. His gaze flickered away from Shadow's piercing one only to be met with more irate stares.

If the man was stronger and had enough energy, he would've punted Boar right off the ledge.

"I am on your side! I don't benefit at _all_ working for that horned annoyance!" Eggman then scowled down at Boar. "I don't know why this _stupid_ bucket of bolts sold all of us out!"

The metallic hedgehog just waved him off. "Go lay down and take a nap somewhere."

"Grr…!" The doctor stomped before turning forward once more, continuing to plead. "You have to believe me!" He felt dirty stooping this low, but he couldn't afford to care. His life was on the line here. When he didn't receive any response – just silent glares – he made his own decision. "Fine! If you don't believe me…" Eggman pulled energy out of somewhere and scrambled over toward the heroes, ducking behind Omega. "…just protect me, I beg of you!"

The bulky bot turned his head to look at him. "GIVE US ONE REASON TO NOT LET YOU PERISH, DOCTOR."

Eggman peered up at him. "Because you all have morals!"

"THAT IS NOT SUFFICIENT."

"Wait a sec before blowin' the doc's brains out, you walking death machine." VC held a hand out, and disregarded the relieved expression flooding Eggman's features. The croc turned toward the others. The slight tremble of his hand wasn't hard to notice. "As much as I hate to say it, we can deal with Eggman later. But right now…let's focus on the ROBOTS COMING TO KILL US, alright?"

"He's…" Tails swallowed thickly, his namesakes thumping the ground nervously beside Sonic. Unsure sapphires watched as Silver used his powers to snap the links of the cuffs binding together the two hurt hedgehogs' wrists, Blaze melting the metal that bound their feet. "He's right. But what are going to do?" he asked, mind whirling, "Sonic and Shadow are still hurt, Boar isn't on our side anymore, and…" The kit blinked at the spot beside said traitorous bot, realizing that someone was missing. "Where's the other Sonic? Wasn't he-?"

"Are you talking about the blue guy?" Boar scoffed. He pointed beyond the ledge before redirecting the finger over to Eggman. "He ran down like the second when you focused on the human."

The robot's words rang true, for Boom hadn't wasted in time in booking it down the stone wall. He was perpendicular, but his speed and pure _rage_ kept him from disconnecting. Steely emerald orbs were squinted against the wind; however, they remained trained on nothing but the incoming robots flying their way up.

He couldn't wait to demolish Bat and Psy just because of what they _were_ , but they weren't high up on his priority list. And neither was Metal Sonic, even though he was a close second. Boom had his sights on Omega, that murdering piece of shit. He was going to tear that bot limb from limb until he was nothing but shards of metal and loose wires. The azure speedster didn't care if the Master Emerald made them nearly impossible to defeat. He was going to make it effing possible.

When he believed that he was close enough, Boom clenched his jaw as he propelled himself off the wall and curled into a solid ball. He was almost like a bullet as he shot through the air. He had aimed for the red and black mech's head, wanting – no _needing_ – that thing to be demolished.

Boom knew good and well that he'd gained all of the robots' attentions, but he didn't care. The image of Mephiles' burned corpse kept him on target, boiling the blood in his veins. He vaguely noticed the psychic bot pulling ahead of the other three, but he didn't pay any attention to him until a thick cyan shield spanned the four machines.

The blue speedster growled to himself in frustration. It was too late to veer off course, so he crashed against the impenetrable wall, bouncing off of it like a harmless rubber ball. Scowling, Boom uncurled his body just in time to get slammed with that same telekinetic force. His chest took the brunt of that attack.

Boom careened back up through the air, biting down hard on his lip to keep his pained shout restrained. That hurt like a _bitch_.

On the top of the wall, Boar's words sent a few Mobians into action. They were jogging over to the ledge to save Boom's insanely impulsive self, but they paused in their strides when said hedgehog reappeared, flying through the air.

Boom safely landed, a hand gently rubbing the abused part of his torso. The others turned towards him and opened their mouths – getting ready to chew him out for being reckless – but he cut them off. "Metal Sonic, Bat, Psy, and _Omega_ ," he spat that last name, "are coming." He glanced over at a slowly healing Shadow. "Didn't see that damned chameleon."

Amy materialized her piko-piko hammer, both fear and determination spreading throughout her system. "But that doesn't mean that he isn't there right? He can turn invisible!"

Shadow's mind was racing. Most of the enemy robots were here. Rabbit wasn't. That chameleon was a toss-up. A potentially lethal toss-up. The Ultimate Lifeform quickly scanned his immediate area, his gaze eventually landing on Sonic and Penumbra. His striped twin was healing the speedster's leg as fast as he could with the half powered gem in his quills.

His breath hitched.

The Chaos emeralds. He hadn't noticed this before, but Nummy wasn't the only one with a jewel. There was one in Boom's quills, one was inside of Omega, and…two in the Tornado behind him. The group had five, and that made sense. That corrupted reptile had the other three. The one he stole from the trade off, and the two he took away from Shadow and Sonic while they were unconscious. They had to be in the base…somewhere…

Shadow could track them down. They had a lower energy output, but he would be able to locate them if he was close enough.

"I'm…" He grunted in discomfort as he wobbly stood up, halting his healing process for now. He was healthy enough not to collapse, and that was all he needed for right now. All eyes were on him. Shadow panted a bit as he straightened himself out. "I'm going back in there…to find the rest of the emeralds."

"Back in there…?" Rogue didn't like the sound of that at all. "Dude! You're crazy! You're not back at a hundred percent yet!"

Silver's brow creased. "The rest of the emeralds…" Then he gasped, the puzzle pieces coming together. "You want to go Super!"

Shadow nodded, making eye contact with Sonic, Boom, Silver, Penumbra, and Grey. The last psychic hedgehog tensed in shock as the Ultimate Lifeform spoke. "Yes, it's the best course of action."

Tails wasn't so sure. "But wait! We don't know if the emeralds actually work because of their power-"

"It's the perfect time to test them out, then." Shadow took a careful step closer to Penumbra so he could successfully use the gem's power. Nummy had just finished Sonic's leg. Shadow gestured to the hero's neck, and Nummy repositioned his hands there and focused. The standing striped hedgie then gave the others one last look. "I'm going. Manage to stay alive until I get back."

Then he blinked out of existence.

"I can…I can go Super...?" Grey looked like he had just won the lottery and then some. "I can go _Super!_ " he excitedly cackled, doing a little dance and momentarily forgetting their situation. "Wait…" he paused, tapping his chin. "What does 'going Super' mean? It _is_ a good thing, right?"

Boom frowned deeply at him, wondering why in the hell _that_ hedgehog could go Super. "You'll find out _later_ , first we have to-"

"-take out Sabo's l-little pets…" A familiar voice interrupted him, and Boom focused over to his doppelganger. Sonic was shakily standing up, rubbing his halfway healed neck. A shallow cut and the redness of the burn was still present, but apparently, he was good to talk. A dangerous glint shone in Sonic's emerald orbs. "…and the devil himself."

Vector blinked, believing that he had missed something. "Sabo? Who-"

"Short for Sabotage." Sonic grinned at him. It was clearly forced. "We can't keep calling that dirty reptile Espio. And well…he keeps destroying everything we know and love right? It's perfect for him."

Blaze nearly sighed in exasperation. "All that you've gone through, and you spent your time thinking of a nickname…?"

"Nevermind that!" Tails looked over his big bro. He still seemed worse for wear. "Are you good to fight, Sonic?"

Said speedster nodded, stretching himself out a bit, wincing at some of the sharp pains the movement caused. "Always little buddy."

"Good!" Eggman barked out, pointed over to the ledge. "Because they're here!"

Every Mobian tensed and backed away from the edge, their attentions trained on nothing but the four robots touching down on the wall. The mechs first focused on an observing Boar, Bat lingering longer on him than the rest of the mechanical group.

"Th-Thanks for the tip, Boar!" Bat patted the hedgehog replica on the shoulder. "S-Saved us a lot of time!"

Boar tilted his head a bit. "…No problem."

"I-I'm Bat by the way!" The winged robot gestured to himself before bobbing his head toward the trio. "A-And that's Metal, Psy, and Omega!"

Boar simply hummed.

On the other side, Rogue narrowed his eyes on his robotic counterpart. He didn't know what to make of that whole interaction. It almost seemed like Boar was hesitant. "So what is it?" he questioned, "Whose side are you on, Boar?"

The robot addressed didn't get to answer. Bat turned towards the white Mobian. "S-So this is who I'm based off of? I-I'm obviously cooler."

"And stronger."

"A-And stronger! Th-Thanks Psy!"

Silver clenched his fists at the sight of his replica, memories of the future causing his chest to tighten. They won't win this time. He would make sure of it.

Grey wasn't even focusing on Psy. He was sending Metal Sonic a heated glare. That robot was second in command, closest to that _chameleon._ He couldn't _wait_ to rip the other's head from his body.

Metal and Sonic were having a quiet stare down until the latter cleared his throat, gingerly putting a hand on his hip. "Metal." He wasn't in the mood for any quips. Things would be straight forward from here on out. He had to get serious.

"My annoying copy," the blue bot responded. "I hope that you…" His red opticals swept the area. "… _all_ of you are ready to die." When a snarl rose up from the crowd, Metal locked eyes with a bristling Nummy. "Even _you_ Penumbra. You are useless to us now that we have a superior model of you."

Boar didn't respond to that, silently watching the show.

"I-It's the order from Master himself!" Bat chirped with a shrug. _So he isn't here…_ Sonic thought. "E-Even though it might be a little hard with so many of you. W-Why are there so many of you?" He faced Metal. "D-Didn't boss say that he blew them up, or something?"

"HE OBVIOUSLY HAD FAILED IN HIS ENDEAVOR." Omega's arms morphed into missile launchers pointed right at his evil twin. "AND YOU WILL FAIL IN YOURS AS WELL. ESPECIALLY BECAUSE THE OTHER ME IS A WORTHLESS CONSUMER MODEL, AND HE MUST BE OBLITERATED."

Without further warning, missiles blasted out of the red and black robot's arms, them heading right for the newcomers, ready to explode at the first sign of resistance. And they did, bright fire and dense smoke causing the heroes to cover their eyes while coughing.

After a second, Sonic lowered his hand, knowing in his gut that Omega's attack did nothing but blow the robots back. He squinted through the dissipating smoke, and his eyes widened at the cyan shield surrounding the bots. The missiles didn't even have a chance to hit them.

"Stupid damn psychic," Boom muttered from beside him.

Psy's opticals and his raised hand were glowing. The wall dropped when he lowered his appendage, but his eyes never dimmed for he suddenly faced his palm in the good Omega's direction. There were gasps the bulky mech was held up in the air.

The psychic robot glanced over to the other Omega. "Your turn."

"I WILL GLADLY SHOW HOW I AM SUPERIOR." His arms changed into duel flamethrowers. "I WILL NOT MELT, OTHER ME. BUT YOU AND YOUR COMRADES WILL."

"Stop!" Silver utilized his powers as well, covering the red and black mech in a blue glow. He gritted his teeth as he fought to keep the bad Omega still. "You will not-!"

"O-Oh no you don't." Bat's ears faced forward, and it wasn't long before the Mobians were brought to their knees, covering their ears. Silver was forced to stop using his telekinesis, the sudden bout of nausea refusing to let him focus.

"What…" No matter how well she blocked her eardrums, Rosy couldn't lose the feeling of vertigo. "What's happening?!"

TT – on his knees – peered over at the mechanical bat. He was fighting to keep the contents of his stomach down. "Vi…Vibrations!" he whimpered.

"Gah…" Eggman was in the fetal position, cursing his luck. "Someone stop that thing!"

"G-Good luck with that." Bat snickered. "Th-The only one who could possibly do that is your Omega." He glanced up at said bot, who was still in Psy's telekinetic grasp. "A-And he's a little held up at the momen-" Bat's voice suddenly went out as he collapsed to the ground, violently shaking.

Metal Sonic stared at the twitching bat before whipping his head over to Boar. The Penumbra look-a-like had a gaping jaw, sparks dancing around artificial teeth. "What is the meaning of this?"

Boar snapped his mouth closed with and generated a scoff. "You're my entertainment."

Grey didn't give the robots time to process that. He was given a window of opportunity, and now that his head wasn't swimming, he was going to jump right through it. Giving his all – and ignoring the throb from the irritating headache that refused to fully go away – he ran forward and thrusted all four of Sabo's minions off the ledge, making them tumble and getting his friends out of the danger zone.

He knew that he wasn't really doing much, since all of them could fly on their own – except for Bat, who was plummeting down to the water below. For that reason, Grey lifted himself off the ground and bolted after them. Metal was upside down when the white hedgehog got to him. The psychic mentally grabbed him and veered right, gaining speed.

Grey dipped down until he was right above the stagnant water, zipping past stone columns that look like they would collapse if the wind blew against them the wrong way.

"I will make your death long and slow, psychic."

Grey glanced back at Metal, who was struggling against his powers. The mammal knew it was only a matter of time before he lost control of the other. "There's nothing you can do that would be worse than what I've already been through." He sneered.

Metal's opticals flashed. "Do not underestimate my ability."

"Do not underestimate my ability." Grey mocked the bot's tone before rolling his eyes. "Chaos, just shut up. You don't scare me." He then focused on a particularly run down pillar and smirked. "You don't want me to underestimate you? Well, then show me how you'll stand up to _this!_ "

Grey took a deep breath before swinging the arm controlling Metal Sonic, hurling the mech into the weakened column. White ears flattened themselves at the loud crash, and the psychic couldn't help but to smile at the massive hole Metal made into the stone. A laugh bubbled out of his throat when – brick by brick – the pillar collapsed with Metal stuck somewhere inside.

Dust rose into the sky as the stones crumbled and splashed into the water below, and the waves created licked the bottom of Grey's shoes.

The white hedgie leisurely clapped his hands. "Wow that was easy." He then linked his fingers behind his head, eyeing the pile of debris in faux-sadness. "Out for the count already Metal? I really _overestimated_ you, didn't I?"

"You will regret…" Grey watched dispassionately as Metal crawled out of the pile of rock, a layer of dust covering the machine. "…ever crossing me."

"And you'll regret ever being built," he retorted just as coolly, raising a brow when Metal's core began to light up. A laser then exploded from the reflective Sonic's body, its bright light nearly blinding the psychic. Nearly. He could see enough to swiftly fly up and around to avoid the laser right on his tail. When Metal gave up that attack, Grey turned around at the sound of splashing to see that his opponent had sliced a thick column right in half. Well. He knew to never get hit with that.

Grey turned back around and got punched square in the face.

* * *

Seeing his twin fly away with Metal Sonic gave Silver a boost of confidence that he couldn't describe.

Ever since he and Blaze had arrived from the future, he had wanted to fix it. Do _anything_ he needed to do to fix it. He was more than ready to take down the energized robots, but the power within them left him doubting a bit. Left him wary. Definitely after Boar had…

But after Grey – who had _nowhere_ the fighting experience that Silver had – just took action without a second thought, it showed Silver that he couldn't hesitate. He had to _go_.

For this world's future.

After pumping himself up, Silver followed in his doppelganger's footsteps.

He levitated into the air and shoot forward, aiming for the evil robots. The evil Omega and Psy had been distracted by their 'leader' being easily carried away. The bulky mech was the first to see him coming, switching his flamethrower for missile launchers.

Two projectiles whizzed toward Silver, but the hedgehog curved them with a single flick of a wrist. Psy, paying attention now, diagonally slashed with a glowing palm to send an arc of crackling cyan energy Silver's way. The time traveler's breath hitched for a moment – _I can't do that!_ – before ducking under the surprising move.

Psy was a mere second from doing it again. Silver froze his robotic replica and maneuvered around flames that charred the tips of his head quills. He threw the armed bot a glare before zooming away, weaving between the pillars and rocky cliffs opposite of his twin's fight. Separating the bots was the best way to fight them and hold them off until either Shadow came back or the Master Emerald was shut down.

It wasn't long before he spotted a place where the valley deepened, water cascading down the two cliff sides bordering an old and wide walkway. Silver would have paused to admire the somewhat familiar view if something hadn't crashed into the back of his head.

The psychic hissed in pain as he whirled around, wondering what in the heck had-

Golden irises dilated when they took in the massive clump of rocks floating behind Psy. Silver went stock still. He knew for a _fact_ that those weren't levitating under his power.

"Don't take your eyes off your opponent." Psy advised, and Silver didn't know whether to attempt to yank those out of his replica's grip, or to run (fly) for his life. Unfortunately, his decision was made for him. Silver had blinked, and every huge stone careened towards him like he was a magnet. "Even if you have full control of them." Psy added as an afterthought.

Silver wasn't paying attention to him anymore.

He immediately let go of the mech and held both of his arms in front of him, focusing on nothing but not letting these rocks crush him. Silver tried to push the offending objects away, but they refused to move. He could only think of one reason why. Psy was on the other side of the rocks, pushing too.

Silver's brow creased when he realized that he was straining himself in this reverse game of tug-of-war, sweat forming on his forehead as he gritted his teeth. A pang of worry then settled in his stomach when he felt himself being pushed backwards, the distance between him and the waterfall closing.

"Gah!" he yelled as he struggled to win this terrible game, ears plastering themselves against his skull when the stress became physical. Silver had never fought for control before, and this was too much. He bit down on his bottom lip when Psy seemed to shove harder. His mind was screaming for him to stop, a migraine quickly forming. But he couldn't. If he did…

Psy increased the pressure exponentially, and Silver couldn't take it anymore.

The psychic didn't get a chance to fall. The rocks were instantly on him. He had crossed his arms in front of him to cushion the impact, but it didn't make a difference. Silver was basically slammed into by a runaway train.

He shouted as the pain reverberated throughout his body; however, any sound was then cut off when he plunged into the rough waters, instinctively holding his breath. Silver attempted to focus, wanting to use his telekinesis to dart back out of the waterfall before he was dragged too far down to face the unknowns below, but his vision blurred and all of his thoughts scattered. It hurt too much. He had to do this under his body's power.

Silver saw nothing but white as he picked a direction, hoping it was the right one. He swam as fast as he could. Fear convinced his muscles to work overtime, and so did the burning in his lungs. Between the rapids pushing him down and the force of gravity, he only had seconds – if that – to return to stable ground.

Silver swam with all his might and gasped for air when sunlight hit his face. He didn't dare stop to breathe however, propelling himself out of the water just in time to have the walkway's edge to be in arm's reach.

Frantic fingers gripped the stone like his life depended on it. Panting, Silver dangled for a swift moment before pulling himself back up into the walkway. He desperately crawled away from the drop-off on his hands and knees, wheezing to get oxygen back in his system. Water weighed down his fur, it dripping and puddling around him.

He didn't have time to relax for long, for he was submerged again.

The simple fact that he was underwater didn't have his heart thudding painfully against his chest. It was the fact that he hadn't moved. The water had been brought to _him._

Lips sealed shut, Silver glanced all around him, wondering what in the heck was going on. When he figured it out, his panic levels skyrocketed. The psychic stood up as best as he could, the surrounding water resisting every action. Silver put his hand out, and his fingers brushed against a solid barrier. A cyan barrier that encapsulated him and the liquid.

He was trapped.

He was going to _drown._

Ice flooded Silver's veins as he pushed, punched, and kicked the wall depriving him of air. _Let me out! Let me out!_ He mentally yelled, a few bubbles escaping his mouth. His vision was blurry, but he could spot Psy on the other side, standing in front of him with glowing eyes. Just watching.

Silver wanted to do something – _anything_ – with his powers, but it was like that part of him had shut down. He was yearning to escape this prison and tear Psy apart; however, it felt like his mind was self-destructing instead. That on top of the fire building up in his chest was too much.

More bubbles left him. _At least he won't get to see me cry._

Silver stared at his replica as his throat constricted, darkness creeping up at the edges of his vision.

Drenched gloves reached up to grab his throat. His body needed him to breathe, but his muddled mind was saying don't. Those two parts of him clashed, and as seconds painstakingly ticked by, common sense rapidly broke down until his instinct completely won out.

Water filled his lungs, and the liquid promptly fell from around him.

Silver coughed violently as his knees failed. He collapsed, the sound of splashing was barely heard over his violent coughing.

"Silver!"

The white hedgie didn't respond to the familiar voice at first, too busy forcefully expelling the water out of his body. However, when a hand softly landed on his shoulder, he blinked his moist eyes and slowly acknowledged the feline squatting in front of him. "B-Blaze?"

"Are you alright?" she asked, withdrawing her arm and wiping her damp glove on her dress.

"Give…" Another cough shook his frame. "Give me a minute." He had to regather himself both physically and mentally. He had been _so_ close to dying… Ousting that morbid thought, Silver took a shaky deep breath and searched for the one who almost took his life. "Where…?"

"He's over there." Blaze bobbed her head down the walkway. Silver followed her line of sight to find Psy rolling to a stop on the stone. A bit confused, the psychic then peered behind the cat to see Amy with her hammer, a prominent frown on her muzzle. Well that explained how Psy got all the way down there.

The purple Mobian returned to her full height and held out a helpful hand. Silver took it and struggled to his feet. "I'm glad that we got here when we did," she said, examining the hedgehog's soaked body.

"Yeah!" Amy bounded over to him with her hammer propped up on her shoulder. Her worried gaze scanned him as well. "He had you trapped in that water bubble! How long were you in there for?"

"I was too panicked to keep track." Silver massaged his temples, and Blaze narrowed her eyes. The psychic sighed at her silent question. "I pushed myself _way_ too hard, and…I can't…"

The pinkette gasped. "You can't use your powers?" Silver shook his head, and Amy pointed down at the ground. "Well you stay here and rest then so you don't hurt yourself anymore!"

Naturally, Silver didn't agree with that. "But I just can't sit back and-"

"You can and you will." Blaze's order was stern and inarguable. "There's no point in hurting yourself for no reason. We can hold him off."

Silver chewed the inside of his cheek. Just Blaze and Amy? He wasn't underestimating them – not by a long shot – but Psy was more of a handful than he had originally thought. He was about to vocalize that, but gunfire kept him from doing so.

He whipped his head around in the direction of the noise. Tails – Silver assumed it was him – was divebombing in the Tornado, pelting a standing Psy with bullets. _So that's how they got here so fast_ , the psychic thought, breath faltering when the bot caught all of the projectiles and sent them right back at the plane.

Tails took a hard left to avoid them all and to avoid crashing into the bridge. But then the aircraft came to a dead stop midair.

Silver's gut dropped.

Psy had a single glowing palm raised, and nothing good would come from that.

"Let him go!" Blaze shouted before unleashing a barrage fireballs in the machine's direction.

All of them were reflected by Psy's unoccupied hand. Amy, Blaze, and Silver danced around the raining fire, the latter hating that he was practically useless at the moment.

"I'm not holding the fox. I'm just holding the plane," Psy commented, "Whether he gets out of it or not isn't my problem." Silver didn't completely understand what he meant by that until fingers starting curling, and the Tornado began to practically implode on itself.

"Get out of there, Tails!" Silver yelled over the screeching metal.

"Don't have to tell me twice!" The kit responded, jumping out of his seat with celerity. He flew over to the trio, his namesakes rapidly twirling behind him. When he got closer, Silver noticed the two Chaos emeralds, one cradled by each arm. Tails looked devastated when he landed by Amy, gazing as Psy switched tactics. Instead of being compressed together, the Tornado was now being torn apart. "My baby…"

The quartet watched helplessly as pieces of the aircraft was thrown into the waterfalls.

Psy refocused on the Mobians, lifting himself off the ground. Silver's muscles tensed when the rocks jutting out of the water dislodged and floated around the mech. Streams of water joined the levitating stones, moving like venomous snakes around him.

"Silver?" Tails' voice was small. "Can't you do that?"

Oh how he wished he could.

* * *

Boom took his shot when that damned robot was too busy trying to set Silver's ass aflame.

Not bothering with any words, the blue hedgie sprinted up to the edge of the wall before jumping as high as he could and curling into a tight ball. He performed a spin dash, hurling his body into the evil Omega's head not once, not twice, but three times. The bulky mech plummeted down, righting himself just before he hit the water.

Boom fell as well, but he was aiming for a floating platform off to the side. The speedster landed on his feet, crouching low when the foothold rocked erratically in the water. Boom eyed his immediate surroundings and cursed that there was nothing but water all around him. Any stable land he saw wasn't in his reach.

 _The stupid lab had to be where it was eighty fucking percent water. At least the water isn't moving…_

"I WILL TERMINATE YOU FIRST." Boom glanced up to be met with missile launchers pointed directly at him. Hard emerald orbs glared at the mech as he continued, "YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE YOUR FATE THIS TIME, HEDGEHOG."

"Says you!" the Mobian spat, "You're going to be the one without a freakin' face by the end of this!"

"HIGHLY IMPROBABLE," was all that was said before winding projectiles were gunning right for Boom. The azure 'hog shifted his weight, getting ready to dodge. To his surprise however, he didn't have to do anything to avoid those deadly missiles.

Something had hooked under his arms and lifted him up just as the platform blew up.

Boom raised his chin to identify whoever the hell interrupted his fight, and he glowered at Rogue smirking down at him. "What the hell?!" the speedster bit out.

The bat rolled his eyes. "You're welcome." Rogue then peered over his shoulder at the red and black bot. "Hey chrome-dome! Follow us and we'll give ya a real fight, yeah?" The winged hero flapped his wings harder when Omega didn't hesitate to trail after them.

"Who told you that you could jump into _my_ fight?" Boom hissed through his gritted teeth as they gained altitude. He saw that Rogue was taking them to a large tiled roof. It definitely had more room than that platform.

"We both have beef with this Omega, dude," Rogue muttered before corkscrewing to prevent himself from being made into swiss cheese by whizzing bullets. "And honestly bro, I have more history with him." He shuddered at that memory of being tortured by that machine. Even though it didn't stand up at all to his most recent sessions…

Boom opened his mouth to argue before snapping it shut. The bat had a point. He wasn't the only one wanting the robot to be reduced to a pile of useless parts. "Don't call me that," he eventually responded, and he ignored the grin he received.

They didn't speak again until they touched down on the worn-down roof. Boom glared at a particular tile that came loose under his foot.

"THIS FIGHT WILL BE ENTERTAINING FOR ME. NOT SO MUCH FOR YOU TWO." Omega commented as he quickly approached. He hadn't reached the flooded structure yet. "MUCH MORE THAN THE FIRST TI-" He didn't get to finish his sentence, for Penumbra had Chaos Controlled right above the machine and kicked their opponent in the head with all his might. The robot took an unexpected dive into the liquid below, disappearing under the surface.

Seemingly satisfied with himself, Penumbra teleported beside a surprised Rogue. Nummy smiled at him before trotting over and looking over the edge, waiting for Omega to inevitably show himself again.

Boom blinked before growling out, "And why in the hell are _you_ here?"

Ruby orbs found emeralds, and Nummy cocked his head at him as if he was confused to why he was being asked that. "I help."

"We – _I_ don't need your help!" Boom waved his arms in frustration. "Piss off somewhere else!" This was _his_ kill dammit!

"Hey Blue calm down!" Rogue grabbed the blue hedgie's arms and guided them back to their place at his sides. Boom was two seconds from punching the bat in the face. Rogue must've sensed the danger, because he let go and backed up a step. "There's no need to get upset! Look," the bat gestured to them all, "this is like round two of that fight in the woods man! Just think of this as a rematch, okay? No friendly fire!"

"We attack…" Nummy's brow creased as he thought. "…to…gether. Okay, Sonic?"

Boom turned away from that irritating duo. "I hate both of you."

Rogue smirked. "I'll take that! It's better than a no!"

"Hate?" Penumbra honestly seemed distressed.

The azure speedster deeply sighed. " _Fine._ Not you. Only him."

That placated the striped one while the bat pursed his lips. "Eh…I'll still take it."

Any potential conversation was snuffed out when a horde missiles rose high into the sky before nosediving right for the three Mobians. They all scattered, the projectiles detonating when they impacted the roof.

When the smoke cleared, Boom realized that fighting on old abandoned buildings might not have been the best idea. There were now gaping holes where the missiles had landed, and well, the roof was starting to crumble right under his feet.

"We need to go!" Was what Boom was going to shout, but that was until something else joined them on the roof. Something that was small and round and – _Are you shitting me? Since when did he have those!?_ "Grenade! Get the _hell_ out of here!"

The azure rodent only had time to take a step backwards before the bomb detonated. He cried out in agony as he was hurled backwards, the heat and force being so intense. He heard the structure they were on collapse as he uncontrollably flew outwards, expression twisted into a pained grimace.

Boom then sucked in a sharp breath when he crashed through a stained-glass window. His flight wasn't over yet though. He still had enough momentum to soar until his back smacked against a stone wall. Boom coughed up bit of blood before gravity wanted to take over again.

His body peeled itself from the surface, and he just now noticed how far away from the ground he was. But luckily – it was about time that things went his way for once – there was rope strung up all around this large tower he was in.

He desperately reached out and grabbed the rope, preventing him from breaking an ankle. Boom hung out for a moment, the front of his body stinging from the blast. He surveyed his surroundings to weigh his options. He looked down. _I could maneuver my way down using the rope that's everywhere to escape out of that open door, or…_ He glanced back up at the window he came through. _I could-_

His train of thought derailed at the sight of the bulky mech staring down at him.

Down it was.

Boom swung off the rope before Omega had a chance to burn it. His stomach was doing flips as he grabbed and let go of his lifelines, meticulously making his way down while dodging bullets and flames.

The hedgehog resisted the urge to sigh in relief when his feet met solid ground.

"I THOUGHT YOU WOULD LIKE TO FIGHT. IT IS DISAPPOINTING TO SEE YOU RUN AWAY."

Boom glared at Omega as the robot floated down to his level, his red opticals glowing. "It's not called running away if you _force_ me out of the arena!" _And speaking of that…where's bat-face and the pet?_

His answer came in the form of a brown feather.

It had drifted down in front of his eyes, and Boom stared at it in confusion. "What the…" He stared up, and his green gaze widened. "…hell?"

There was a giant effing bird swooping down upon them, its powerful beak open and screeching. _Riding_ said bird was Rogue, who was grinning wickedly with a bunch of rope in his hands. Omega pointed his machine guns up at the avian and let loose. All of the bullets had missed the bird, but the bat gasped when a one grazed his shoulder.

"Why do I always get shot in the shoulder!?" he complained loudly before spinning the rope like a lasso and catching the robot's torso, pinning his arms down as well. Rogue whooped as he and the bird spun around Omega a few times until the rope ran out. "Get yee-hawed, dude!"

Once Rogue let go of the fibers, the large bird darted toward Boom. The hedgehog was too shocked to move, and he was picked up by his shoulders. He was carried through the open door and back into the open air.

It took a while for Boom's brain to catch up, but once it did, he yelled out, "What in the hell was _that?"_ Emerald orbs drifted up to concentrate on the avian's head, which was unnaturally large, like the rest of its damn body.

Rogue patted the bird's back. "That…was the awesomeness of Hawky here!" The bat glanced back at one of his own wings, the left being completely unusable due to the weird angle it was bent. It hurt, but honestly, he had been through so much that it was the equivalent of a tickle. The burns he had received where nothing but bruises to him. "He's my temporary wings!"

Boom frowned as he peered at the bat's appendages. Yeah, there was no way he could fly in that condition. "Hawky? _Really?_ " They didn't even know what kind of bird it was!

"Yep!" Rogue laughed. "And I'm pretty sure he won't blow up, so you don't have to punch me again." He then petted the bird. "Isn't that right, Hawky?"

The avian cawed.

Boom decided to change the subject before he lost his mind. "Where's Penumbra?"

Rogue bobbed his head the way they came. "Back in the tower."

The hedgehog narrowed his eyes at the stone structure. "What? But I didn't see-"

Words died on his lips when the tower blew up. It wasn't a regular explosion either. Familiar energy was expelled from it, and Boom instantly knew that Omega couldn't have achieved that feat.

"That gave the bot a taste of his own medicine." Rogue snorted before leading Hawky down to a sizable piece of land jutting out of a cliff side. Large talons let Boom go before the bird grounded itself. The bat hopped off of it and massaged the bird's head. Hawky leaned into his touch.

Boom scoffed, crossing his arms and wincing at the burns there. "Get a room."

Rogue stuck his tongue out.

There was then a bright light, and Penumbra was crouching beside Boom. Rogue calmed down the surprised avian, smoothing down ruffled feathers.

Nummy seemed tired, panting. The azure speedster looked him over, and saw that he was in the same condition Boom and Rogue were in. "Good job?" His voice was raspy.

"Yeah," the speedster reluctantly admitted, "but that didn't put him down for good."

"Nope." Rogue squinted against the sun, holding his hand up to shade his eyes. "There he is, climbin' out of the rubble now."

Nummy whined, clearly unhappy. "More attack?"

Boom clenched his fists as he nodded.

 _Stripes, hurry your ass up._

* * *

When Penumbra blinked out of existence, Sonic believed that it was time for him to get into the action. The hero was going to make the other Silver share, because he was out for Metal's head now. Everything had gone too far. Metal – all of them – needed to be stopped.

The azure hero turned to the leftover crew to announce his departure, but Blaze beat him to the punch. "Tails," the feline began, her yellows meeting questioning sapphires, "Can you take me to Silver? He's going to need help."

"Uh…" Tails glanced over to Sonic, and the hedgehog nodded. "Sure!" The kit hovered back over to his plane and revved it up, Blaze jumping into the backseat. Tails was about to lift off, but then he paused, scanning group. "Anyone else want to tag along?"

It was quiet for a moment, then:

"Hey Ames." Sonic scratched his nose as the pinkette energetically spun to face him, expression open. "Why don't you go with them?" _I can't have you helpin' me out, Amy. Metal is in a whole league of his own without the energy. With it…_ "I'd hate it if you get hurt out here tryin' to protect me."

She frowned. "But-"

"He's right, Amy." Blaze cut in, "He has to focus, and you'll only distract him."

Amy thought for a second before sighing. "I don't want that…" She huffed before jabbing a finger at Sonic's chest. "Fine, but if I find out that you got hurt because I wasn't there-!"

Sonic sent Blaze a thankful look before smiling good-naturedly at the pinkette. "Don't worry about me! You just fight your hardest out there, alright?"

Amy withdrew her hand. "Back at you!" she responded as he jogged over to the Tornado, jumping onto the wing. Tails saluted as they took off, and Sonic returned the gesture.

"Okay so…" The blue hedgie addressed the stragglers. Rosy and TT were watching as their counterparts flew off, VC, Vector, and Omega were focused on him, and Eggman was still hiding behind the durable mech. Boar was watching the action in the distance.

Sonic pursed his lips, not sure what to think about the Penumbra look-a-like. He had given up their hiding location, but then again, he had taken care of Bat somehow. So he _was_ on their side then? He wasn't sure. Hopefully Eggman still had control over the bot.

Huh. That's the first time he ever had that thought.

"You guys stay safe up here, okay?" The hero took a step in the opposite directions at the nods he received.

"Stay s-safe! And d-don't let Grey get r-really hurt!" TT called, and Sonic gave him a thumbs up before running off.

Unlike his twin, Sonic stayed on the top of the wall as he sprinted, planning on joining the other Silver – apparently named Grey – in his fight. The hero kept his eyes peeled for any sign of action. Blue ears perked at the sound of splashing and he zeroed in on a crumbling column in the distance. Bingo.

His body was sore, but he didn't think about that when he threw himself off the wall, aiming for the closest pillar of stone. He landed on the top of it at a slight angle before bouncing off in the direction the next closest one. It was a good thing that he'd been in this place earlier, or this would have been almost impossible to navigate.

Sonic was a pinball, ricocheting off the columns until he reached the one right next to the scene. He landed on a thin window ledge, peering down at Metal firing a laser at Grey, who skillfully dodged it. When the psychic took his eyes off of the blue bot, Sonic knew that he was in trouble.

The hero leaned over the edge and went into freefall right above Metal. Sonic cringed when Grey was launched backwards because of the punch, skidding over the water before regaining his wits and floating in the air. The white hedgehog was rubbing his jaw, but he was smiling.

Sonic rose a brow at that until he closed the distance between him and Metal enough to allow a smirk to grow on his own muzzle.

The mech didn't know what hit him until it was too late.

The splash was enormous, Sonic having landing hard on Metal's head, his momentum forcing the bot to take an unexpected swim.

The speedster hopped away before he too got an unwanted bath. He came in for a landing near Grey on top of a floating platform. He flailed his arms to keep his balance. Now wasn't the time to take a dip.

Sonic then addressed Grey. "Hey!" He flinched at the sharp pain raising his voice caused. Once the other glanced at him, he lowered his volume some. "You alright over there? That was one heck of a punch!"

"Nah." The psychic floated closer to him, seeming more amused than hurt. He scoffed. "That was _nothing_ compared to what Penumbra did to me." The image of those bloodied rooms in the underground base popped up in Sonic's mind, and his lips twisted downwards. However, before he could say anything, movement from the water gained their attention. Metal was reemerging, and Grey chuckled. "Did you hear me Metal? _Penumbra_ packs a bigger punch than you do!"

"After I eliminate my worthless copy…" The robot's midsection lit up, and Grey rolled his eyes. This again? "…whatever I do to you will make Penumbra seem like a harmless pet."

"That's a lotta talk, Metal," Sonic spoke up, cracking his knuckles. "Too bad that your bark is worse than your bite!"

"Do you not see your condition? Obviously-"

Sonic waved the robot off. "That doesn't count and you know it! I couldn't do anything."

"And that made it all the better." Light exploded from Metal's torso, and it was aimed right at Sonic. Said hedgehog sped out of the way, him creating a fine mist as he ran on the water. Metal blasted after him, causing the hero to sidestep the vaporizing beam.

Grey stared in awe at the feat. Sonic _had_ to be defying several laws of science. The psychic knew that he did all the time, but Sonic was doing it under his _own_ power, and that was awesome.

Done gushing, Grey took off after the speedy duo, fighting to catch up to them. When he had Metal in range, he held up a hand and the bot promptly froze. "There's no use struggling!" He laughed. "Just give it up! Sonic! Let loose!"

The hero didn't have to be told twice. Sonic jumped at a stone pillar, launched himself off of it, and rammed into Metal, not holding anything back. Grey had let go of the mech a split second before the impact. He snickered when Metal skid across the water like he had did a few minutes before. Grey then plucked Sonic out of the air and settled them both down on the bottom half of a column destroyed long ago.

Sonic shook off the hit, it not being as painless as it should've. He grinned at the psychic anyway though. "Now that was flawless! We make a good team, yeah?"

"Hell yeah!" Grey held up an arm and they high-fived. "Y'know, I like you _way_ better than your twin."

Sonic rubbed his shoulder. "Yeah he can be a headache. And from what I've heard, he was worse before he met all of us."

Grey snorted. "Definitely." He didn't take his eyes off Metal as the mech righted himself. "And uh well…" Sonic rose a brow when the other began to fiddle with his fingers, bashful now. "I…I'm sorry for attacking you and Shadow when I first woke up. It…was uncalled for and…"

"Don't worry about it," Sonic said with a smile, "Considering all that you went through, you could've done a lot worse." His smile waned a bit. "Though what you did to Penumbra…"

Grey deeply sighed. "Yeah…even though I _really hated_ him for what he did, that wasn't…we shouldn't have…"

"Duck!"

Sonic's loud order caused him to automatically press himself flush against the stone beneath him. A red-hot laser soared right over them, and Grey's pulse was in his ears. "Let's…continue that convo later."

Sonic wholeheartedly agreed. "Yeah, later."

* * *

Eggman had not pictured this when Metal Sonic had first brought Penumbra into his lab in Westopolis. He had imagined himself defeating that blue rat once in for all, not helplessly cowering while the _heroes_ took care of the threat that _he_ was supposed to be.

Couldn't life just favor him, for once?

"Just standing up here and watching seems…wrong," one of the crocodiles said after Sonic left, "We have to DO something!"

The other croc scratched the back of his neck. "Um…actually I'm pretty content staying up here and NOT having my life put in danger." All of them startled when an explosion went off in the distance. The green reptile gestured in that general direction. "See? We're safe here!"

"That's true VC, but…" The pink rodent stared up at him with a determined expression. "But like what Vector said, we can't do nothing while they fight! We have to help somehow!"

VC pinched his nose. "Well what do you have in mind? Because I'd _love_ it if you shared."

The girl was at a loss, but the kit at her side had an idea. "We can ch-check on Shadow…a-and Red's group in the base…"

"That's a great idea!" Vector patted the kid a little too hard on his back. "We can try to help them out down there!"

"And run into Rabbit or Esp – I mean Sabotage or Sabo or whatever we're callin' him?" VC shook his head vehemently. "No thanks!"

The pinkette bit her lip. "Honestly, there's a higher chance of those two fighting either Shadow or Red's group right now."

"That's even better incentive to go. It's settled!" Vector trotted over to the edge of the wall and bent his knees a little bit. "I'll meet y'all over there!" He dove over, the three Mobians running to see him drop.

Eggman didn't care enough – or had the energy to – view it for himself. The adrenaline of potentially being face-to-face with menacing robots was wearing off.

The hedgehog/fox duo nodded to each other before the kid hovered into the air, grabbing the girl's raised wrists. The pinkette then gave VC a look. "We better see you down there!" she exclaimed as they flew off.

The lingering croc muttered under his breath, pacing back and forth, before shouting to the sky. VC whirled around and pointed at Omega. "You stay here big guy and watch them two."

"SURELY I WILL BECOME BORE-"

"Just…stay." VC then took a deep breath and jumped off the ledge before he changed his mind.

A couple of seconds passed before Omega turned to Eggman and Boar. "I DO NOT FAVOR THIS SITUATION. I WANT TO DESTROY MY COPY, NOT BABYSIT."

While Boar glanced at the bulky mech, Eggman whipped his head in the direction of a second explosion. "Then don't." Boar drawled out, his voice monotone. "Go wild. Spill some blood. Do whatever you want. Don't let some fleshy tell you what to do."

"I DO NOT DESIRE TO TARGET MY COMRADES." Omega gazed in the direction his twin had gone in. "THE CROCODILE WAS CORRECT HOWEVER. YOU ARE UNTRUSTWORTHY AND NEED TO BE SUPERVISED."

"How am I untrustworthy?" Boar cocked his head, fully facing the other now. "I called those four robots up here so I could take one down. I did your little group a favor. I mean, do you prefer that I had _gutted_ one of _your_ comrades instead?"

The two robots had a brief stare down. Omega was the first to turn away. "YOU USED THE ROBOTS' EXPECTATIONS OF YOU AGAINST THEM, BUT YOU LIMITED YOUR ATTACK TO ONLY THE BAT. EXPLAIN."

"I have my reasons." Boar gestured to the open space in front of them. "Go rip your double into shreds. You'll enjoy it."

"I HAVE NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT." Omega activated his boosters. "STAY OUT OF TROUBLE."

Boar didn't answer as the bigger bot flew away.

Eggman had observed the whole interaction silently, trying to get his tired mind to understand what the striped machine was doing. Once Omega was out of earshot, he asked, "What was that about?"

The look-a-like shrugged. "I didn't want him looking over me…" A single chuckle escaped him. "…and I was a second away from destroying him. You said that we were on their side, correct?"

"Right…" The doctor trailed off, his eyes narrowing behind his glasses. He shook his head. "But never mind that. We need to go before I – we – perish out here." That was the _last_ thing Eggman wanted to happen. He had to rebuild his reputation that the chameleon all but torn apart.

Boar's stare sent a shiver down his spine. "We're not going anywhere. Things are starting to get juicy."

Eggman – who had stood back up after Omega's departure – gritted his teeth while stepping forward. He would take the plane behind them, but then his leaving would be obvious…to both allies and enemy. "Listen to me, you pile of scrap metal! I'm your creator, and-!"

"And what?" The human paused in his stride when Boar approached him until nearly no space separated them. "You'll destroy me if I don't listen?" Eggman gasped when his jacket was yanked and they were now seeing eye-to-eye. The red opticals were peering into his soul. "Because I don't think so."

"Why you little…" The doctor sucked in a harsh breath when Boar pulled out one of his many thin spines, holding the sharp point right up to his cheek. He flinched when the robot flicked his wrist and cut into his skin, drawing blood.

Boar followed the bead of liquid with his eyes before locking them with the human's once more. "You know, I have a sneaking suspicion that you actually weren't in charge of making me. Those robots are so similar to me, and they seem to be your enemy so…" He barked out a laugh. "But you know what? I'll give you the benefit of the doubt."

Eggman then yelled out in agony when Boar reached down and stabbed his right knee, making said joint give out. He fell back on his rear. The man was frozen, scared to move. The pain was unexpected and too much and…

"But only if you sit down, stay put, and enjoy the show," Boar resumed with a smirk.

"Don't…" Eggman panted out, feeling blood oozing out of his leg.

The mech walked backwards, leaving the quill where he had lodged it. "Do what? Kill them? I won't, if they keep me entertained." Boar halfheartedly waved before flying away.

 _He…He won't do anything as long as there's fighting…_ Eggman's leg twitched, and he swallowed the resulting pained groan. _But when everything is settled, what happens then…?_

He was afraid of the answer.

* * *

Vector took a breath when he breached the surface of the water, his tail swishing back in forth to propel him toward the incoming land. The croc stood up when it was shallow enough and shook the excess droplets off of him, glad that he had the thought to leave his headphones behind once he realized that they were headed to a place filled with water.

The croc peered back at the nearly opaque liquid, brow furrowing. On the way over, he kept noticing a shadow in the water. He had immediately passed it off as a big fish, but…

At the sound of twirling tails, Vector grinned at TT and Rosy, those thoughts being pushed to the back of his mind. The croc rubbed his hands in anticipation once they touched down. "Alright, all we have to do wait for my double so we can-"

"-hopefully get out of this ALIVE." VC emerged from the water with a subtle frown on his face.

Vector folded his arms over his chest. "Look, other me. With that attitude, you might as well start diggin' your own grave!"

Rosy nodded. "We have to go in there thinking that we're gonna win this thing! We have to have confidence, right Tails?"

TT's twitching namesakes gave his uneasiness away, but he attempted to hide it with the surest smile he could muster. "R-Right! We're going to h-help our friends, not to make things h-harder for them."

VC was certainty _not_ pouting as he nervously strode over to the automatic doors that hid the interior of the base. Vector gave him a supportive pat on the shoulder as they led, Rosy and TT becoming their shadows. Some of VC's anxiety was melting away as he focused on the fact that they were helping out. That they were all getting closer to ending this whole thing altogether. It would be nice to have some peace after all of this chaos.

It was too bad that his nerves crashed back into him when the metal glided open.

Both of the crocodiles stopped dead in their tracks and Rosy gasped from behind them. "I-It's Sabo!"

Said chameleon – who wasn't expecting visitors right at his doorstep – allowed a twisted grin to grow. "What a surprise." A protected amber orb darted to each member of the small group. "And Sabo? Is that…short for Sabotage?" The reptile snickered. "That's clever, but unnecessary since I'll be the only me soon enough."

Movement of his arms brought attention to the detective held hostage. "Espio!" Vector curled his fingers into fists, pulse racing when he saw the blade held up to his friend's neck. "What happened?!"

"Vec-"

"Did I tell you that you could talk?" Sabo increased the pressure of the kunai. "One more word, and I'll dump your cold body into the water." Espio smartly quieted, and TT whimpered.

"Let him GO!" VC forced out. This wasn't good. This wasn't good at _all._

"Yelling is rude and it will get you nowhere." Sabo tisked. "Where are your manners?"

"Says the one threatening to kill our friend," Rosy muttered loud enough for the chameleon to hear.

"Well, he isn't dead yet, now is he?" VC gulped as he and Vector shared an equally panicked look. The evil reptile snorted. "Now if you just do as I say, then I'll consider letting him live."

Ever Mobian there knew that that was a flat out lie, but what choice did they have?

Vector exhaled heavily out of his nose. "What do you need us to do?"

The victorious look he received was absolutely chilling.

* * *

 **Woo that was a monster of a chapter! It was so fun to write too, not gonna lie. Everything was everywhere though, and I hope it wasn't too confusing.**

 **And the bird isn't a completely random thing. It's a legit 'character' from Sonic 06. It helped the hedgies out in Kingdom valley.**

 **Random topic a go-go: Have you all heard about the custom character maker in Sonic Forces? What do you guys think of it?**

 **At first, I was kinda disappointed because it wasn't a reoccurring character (cough – Shadow or Silver – cough) but then the more I thought about it, the more I liked it. It's pretty cool to make your own OC, and well, I could always create a cannon character if I really wanted too X)**

 **Next chapter…battle royale part two!**

 **Ps- Thank you sooo much Guest (aka READ ME PLEASE) for the nickname suggestion. I've actually been stumped on a name for Evil Espio for a while now!**

 **And to every other reviewer, I just wanna tell you that I cherish every comment and they always brighten my day! Thank all of you for your support, and I'll see you guys next chapter!**


	41. Chapter 41

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic the hedgehog characters.**

 **A/N: So I lied. This isn't really part two of battle royale. I thought it was gonna be, but my fingers said nope. That's in the next chappie! This one's more like a** _ **pre**_ **-battle royale part two…yeah, let's go with that. Enjoy!**

 **Chapter 41- Trouble in paradise**

Sabo appreciated the fact that things were – mostly – going according to plan. Yes, the heroes' arrival had been a bit…premature, and those hedgehogs had been freed. However, he heard signs of fighting in the distance. He assumed that Psy, Omega, Bat, and Metal Sonic were doing the job he had assigned them, and well, he knew that Rabbit was dealing with the small group deep in the base.

And an unexpected gift was place right in his lap.

Perfectly willing Mobians that would do whatever he wanted them to do.

Oh what _power_ holding someone hostage could give you.

"Before we get down to business," the armored chameleon made sure that his kunai stayed in contact with Espio's neck at all times. He didn't want his twin to perform any slippery moves like he did by that lake. Sabo had been _so_ close to slitting his throat. "I want to know exactly who I'm speaking to here."

"Does it matter?" Sabo cut his gaze over to one of the crocs. He could feel the anger radiating off of him, but he could also see the fear in his eyes. The fear of what's to come. That was the Vector he knew, most definitely.

"Yes it does." The chameleon peered between the two green reptiles to examine the hedgehog and fox behind them. From the way the kit violently flinched at his stare and from the way the pinkette completely shielded him with her body, Sabo could make a safe guess that those two where from his dimension. He smirked. "Now I know that none – well, _most_ – of you won't try anything idiotic." He rose a brow at the crocodile staring at his friend held captive. "No bright ideas, or you'll regret it, croc."

The large reptile he was addressing didn't respond to him, just silently glaring.

"Just spit it out!" the hedgehog yelled, "What do you want from us?"

Desperation was clear in her tone, and Sabo couldn't have asked for more. "Round up the survivors and the robots and bring them here. Tell them it's an order from me; they won't argue." The chameleon thought for a moment before mending his statement. "All of them but Metal. You might have to be a bit more persuasive."

The quartet he was speaking to all shared a hesitant look. None of them moved.

Sabo guessed that they needed incentive then. With a precise flick of the wrist, he sliced this twin's neck enough to let blood spill, but not enough to kill him. He still needed his little hostage. He smirked at the pained hiss he received and at the shocked gasps that were chorused.

"Get moving," he commanded sharply.

The Chaotix Vector was the first to pull himself together, tearing his stare off of the wincing Espio. "Fine! I'll…I'll go fetch Knuckles' group in the base." He made a move to step forward, but Sabo didn't let him pass. The chameleon wasn't stupid.

"Did you misunderstand me, detective?" Sabo questioned, tilting his head a tad.

The larger one's brow furrowed as he spoke. Sabo thought it was impressive that the other's teeth didn't separate once. "I'm DOING what you said! Grab the others and-"

"Grab the _survivors_." The purple Mobian dragged the last word out to make sure it stuck. By the look on the heroes' faces, he believed that he succeeded. "All you're going to find down there are lifeless corpses."

Amy covered her mouth in horror, and the Tails beside her used his namesakes to hug himself. "Lifeless…corpses…?" The girl shook her head like she couldn't believe it. Tears were welling up in her eyes. "No…! Not… _no!_ "

"I don't…" The Vector that Sabo was lucky enough to meet all that time ago clenched his jaw, pointing an accusatory finger at the corrupt chameleon. "That's not true! You're lying!"

"Am I?" If Sabo wasn't speaking the truth right now, he would be in a couple of minutes. Those two echidnas and Rogue's feminine double didn't have a chance. Rabbit could smash skulls in a heartbeat. And well, he highly doubted that any one of them would be able to out speed her for long.

The green scaled detective audibly gulped as he focused on his purple friend, looking for any consolation. "Espio-"

Sabo shook his head. "No communication. Just do what I told you to do."

"Alright, just…We'll go."

"What?!" The detective whirled on his double. "We can't just LEAVE-"

"Would you rather have your _friend_ die?" the twin retorted, and the other eventually deflated, giving up. The job-less croc sighed. "Let's just go."

The wicked chameleon inwardly snickered. This was too rich. "I would listen to him, or my little double here will be joining that bat and those two echid-" The next thing Sabo knew was that he had lost complete control of his suit along with the muscles in his body. "Gaaa _aah!_ " he shouted in pain as electricity wrecked his system.

 _What? What's…_ He could barely think straight as he collapsed onto his side, his thoughts scattering and never returning to their proper place. His vision was blurry, but he could still make out a now freed Espio scampering away from him, the rest of the Mobians looking on in surprise until the former captive told them to run. Hands were held, and then there was splashing. They had dove into the water to escape.

Sabo would've have punched the ground in frustration and rage if he could manage to get his arms to listen to him. It took a couple of seconds, but the convulses finally ended, and he could think properly again.

 _What in the hell happened?_ He mentally questioned, panting as he struggled onto his hands and knees. _Electricity? Could one of them have done it? No…no way. And it wasn't any of my bots, because none of them could – Wait. Actually…_

"Whoops." Sabo stilled at the mechanical voice before glancing up in the direction it was coming from. A single amber orb widened at the sight of Boar floating down towards him. Then it narrowed, the reptile becoming wary. "I guess my aim isn't as good as I thought it was," the robot continued, grounding itself and holding out a hand for the chameleon to take.

Sabo had the mind to slap the appendage away, but instead, he stood back up under his own power. Boar shrugged before letting his arm drop. Sabo scowled at the mech, knowing good and well that the hit was on purpose. His twin and the doctor had stolen Boar away from him before he had a chance to make an impression. Boar was his enemy. An enemy he had to dispose of ASAP.

"You should have run away with Eggman while you had the chance." Sabo glared, preparing to take the other down. Dealing with Mobians were one thing, energized robots were another. It was a good thing that his suit was powered up as well, or he himself wouldn't have a sliver of a chance of winning.

"Why?" Boar cocked his head. "Because you're going to destroy me now?" The chameleon had a feeling that the other was mocking him, and he was right, for the robot snickered. "I doubt that though. You are my creator after all, am I wrong? You look like it."

Sabo didn't know where the mech was going with this. "That means nothing. You attacked me and let them escape. I should-"

Boar put a hand up. "Before you make any…rash decisions." A couple sparks leaked out of his mouth, and Sabo's teeth gnashed together. "I just want to share something with you. Do you know a…what's his stupid name…" Boar tapped his chin. "…a Shadow?"

The chameleon nodded after a moment. He knew that his targets were getting away, but Boar…something was up with him.

"I knew you would." The robot then pointed behind the reptile at the entrance of the underwater lab. "Well, he's down there gathering Chaos emeralds – whatever they are – so he can go Super – whatever that is."

Sabo swore that his heart skipped multiple beats.

Super…? Had he heard that right? Shadow could go _Super?_ Sabo hadn't seen the transformation first hand, but he had viewed pictures and videos of the havoc his dimension's Sonic caused after absorbing the emeralds. _Don't tell me…that Shadow can do the same thing?_ He hadn't even _considered_ that in his plans. If Shadow transformed, it was possible that the Master Emerald energy would not be enough. His robots would… _he_ would…

The chameleon halted that train of thought, reminding himself exactly who told him this information. Boar could be blatantly lying for all he knew to provide a distraction. That was the likelier path because the robot wasn't on his team, and a Super Shadow raising hell would _not_ go well for him.

Sabo opened his mouth to call the bot out on his lies, but someone else beat him to the punch.

"D-Don't believe him!" Two pairs of eyes swiveled over to the newcomer. Sabo wouldn't dare admit this out loud, but he was relieved when a dripping Bat landed at his side. The reptile then rose a brow when he noticed the winged mech twitching. Bat angrily gestured to an exasperated Boar. "He-He-He shocked m-me! H-He's not on our s-s-side!"

"Yes." Sabo cut his gaze back over to the bot in question. "I've figured out that much."

"D-Do you w-want me to attack, M-Master?" Bat asked, clenching his fists.

Boar produced a scoff. "Don't tempt me. I won't stop, and you'll be stuck at the bottom of this lake – sea – whatever it is." He refocused on Sabo, who had a feeling in his gut that Boar's bite was way worse than his bark. "And you can choose whether to believe me or not. It's your funeral."

"Why did you tell me that information?" Sabo needed to know the other's incentive. "What's in it for you?"

"Well, going off the expression on your face when I said 'Super'," Boar's carmine opticals flashed, "I can tell that what happens will amuse me."

 _Amuse…? He was doing this, for entertainment? But then again, he could be lying._ Sabo had no clue what to do. He could proceed in tearing apart this threat in front of him, or he could…check in his base anyway. There was no harm in checking. Yes, there would be more distance between him and his targets, but he had something more pressing to worry about.

Taking a deep breath, he made his choice. "Bat," he barked out, "Did you see the group my twin escaped with?"

Bat nodded. "Y-Yeah, b-but don't get mad because I d-didn't st-stop them! I-I thought Boar was g-gonna-"

"I don't care," Sabo interrupted him, "Go find that group, and kill them all."

The winged robot saluted him. "A-Aye aye!" He then glanced suspiciously over at Boar. "W-What's he going to d-do?"

Sabo thought for a moment before addressing the striped bot, "If you want to be _amused_ , then follow me so you can see Shadow's demise. _If_ he is indeed down there." _So you'll be within arm's reach when I decide to punish you for lying._

"Oh he's down there alright," Boar retorted as he stepped forward.

"Wh-Wha…" Bat's opticals snapped between them. "Y-You're just g-gonna let him go with you?"

Sabo turned away from the bots and activated his boosters. He had to get to the room holding those gems as fast as possible. "Don't worry about us, Bat. Follow your orders."

"Yeah, shoo fly," Boar added.

"A-Ass," Bat muttered lowly before flying off.

Sabo peered over his shoulder at the Penumbra-look-alike. "Let's go."

Boar vaguely gestured to the base. "Lead the way."

The chameleon's lips twisted downwards at that, but he flew back into the structure anyway. He heard Boar's boosters as he entered, the doors closing behind them both. A thought made him pause however, and he slowed.

His companion curiously looked at him, and Sabo said, "You're in front. I have to keep my eye on you."

Boar seemed to find that funny. "Literally, right?" He floated forwards, glancing askance at him. "I don't know where I'm going, just so you know."

"I'll tell you where to go. Start flying."

"Bossy bossy. Be lucky that you're of use to me, or I would've sent a spine through your neck by now."

Sabo refused to respond to that underlying threat, and Boar eventually took off. The chameleon periodically threw out directions, and the robot obediently followed them. Sabo stayed focused on what laid ahead, keeping calm. There was no reason for him to be nervous. Shadow wasn't down in this base. If he was, Sabo would've seen him. Right? Shadow was fighting and hopefully losing horribly against one of his loyal bots.

With that image in his head, he kept the less welcome thoughts away.

The Chaos emeralds were on the deepest floor in a room all their own. Sabo just picked an empty space and threw them in there because – if he was being completely honest – he didn't need them. He just had to keep them away from the captured hedgehogs. The Master Emerald had all of his focus, but now, he could see that he had possibly made a grave mistake. He just wished that the odds were in his favor.

They were almost to the room – if he wasn't mistaken – and he had thought about going to search out Rabbit to see how she was doing, but he decided that it was best to wait until after he found out that he was in the clear.

"Left." The duo turned a corner, and Sabo decreased his volume. "It's that one."

Boar didn't say anything as they slowed down, letting Sabo pass. The chameleon gave the other a look that clearly communicated 'No funny business'; the robot gave a simple shrug. A frown marred the chameleon's face as he approached the doors hiding the gems. He triggered the motion sensor.

It turned out that Boar was right after all.

He and the bot crept into the open space, the metal sliding shut with a quiet swish. Sabo's fingers were clenched at his sides as he stared at Shadow standing in the middle of the space. The striped hedgehog's back was to them with a Chaos emerald cradled in each hand. The chameleon couldn't find the third, but he did notice a faint glow coming from the hedgehog's quills.

"Told you so," Boar grunted smugly; Sabo didn't bother with him. He just kept a steady eye on the rodent in front of him. The constant thorn in his side that _never went away._

A black ear twitched at the robot's words. Shadow took his time in turning around – the loose chains scraping the floor as he did so – and the action rubbed Sabo the wrong way. It was like he wasn't a threat to the hedgehog anymore, which was wrong. He was Shadow's worst nightmare.

The black Mobian barely gave Boar the time of day as he stared Sabo down, his ruby irises lit aflame. The chameleon took this time take in the other's condition, inwardly glowering at the fact that he was nearly at full health. Yes, there were blood splatters, but the bruising and burns and broken bones were almost gone. Anything left was being healed at this very moment.

It didn't matter what condition Shadow was in however; Sabo still had the upper hand here. He couldn't be touched.

"Shadow," he uttered, shattering the heavy silence.

The rodent didn't respond. His glare was holding a million deadly promises.

Boar clapped his hands multiple times, cackling. "Ooo this is going to be good! I'm glad that you brought me down here, reptile." The robot made his way to the side of the room, waving Shadow off when those molten reds landed on him. "Don't mind me. I'm just here to watch a good fight."

It was then that Mobian decided to speak. "So you told him." It was more of a statement than a question.

Boar held his hands up innocently as he leaned against the wall. "Yeah, but I'm not on anyone's team. I'm on my _own_ team, alright?"

Shadow narrowed his eyes further and a growl leaked into his voice. "You sold my group out, and you _led_ him-"

" _Yes_ , I did that," Boar interrupted him, his tone cracking like a whip, "But what you _didn't_ see was that I targeted the bat robot, and I kept the pirate here from _killing_ who I assume is your little chameleon friend. He's now strolling above ground with the rest of your group." Shadow obviously didn't trust his words. Boar rolled his opticals. "I would cross my heart if I had one."

Sabo couldn't help but to glare at the robot. Switching sides at the drop of a dime. For what? Pure entertainment? Or just to be on the winning side?

When the chameleon regarded Shadow once more, the hedgehog was eying him while keeping Boar in his periphery. Sabo tried again to begin something akin to conversation. "You can go Super?" There was no reason to beat around the bush here.

He was half expecting Shadow to hedge around the question, so getting a blunt answer was unexpected. "I can."

Sabo took a steadying breath to keep his pulse under control. He was still going to win this. Shadow didn't have all of the emeralds yet, and could he _alone_ destroy all of his robots? He doubted it.

When the hedgehog continued, the reptile's eye marginally widened at his words. "And the energy can be transferred between me, the Sonics…and others."

 _The energy can be transferred?_ Sabo's mind was whirling. _As in, they can all be Super at the same time? And others…how many others…?_

This did not bode well for him, not at all. He hadn't prepared for this. If he had foreseen these turn of events, he would have locked those emeralds nice and tight, or at least sent them off where they couldn't be obtained easily.

Shit.

He had a few options. One was to attack Shadow here and now, but he knew that the hedgehog would just teleport away before he landed a hit. His second option was to speed out of the base attempt to locate the rest of the Chaos emeralds that had to around, most likely with the individual heroes. Option number three was to collect his robots and…and retreat. Just until the emeralds were used up. The gems would scatter after they were done, he knew that. He would just bide his time until it was time to strike.

Then he'd watch Shadow's life bleed out of his eyes.

Sabo hadn't chosen his plan yet – it was between option two and three – when he vanished. The chameleon spun around only to get a foot full of face, making him regain visibility and launching him across the room. He managed to recover in time to keep from landing hard on the ground. Ignoring Boar's bark of laughter, Sabo focused on Shadow, who was lowering his leg.

Shadow's gaze was steely. "You won't win this fight, chameleon." The purple Mobian scowled and was about to make a scathing retort, but the hedgehog didn't let him get a word in. "Boar," the bot's chuckles died down at the sound of his name, "If you want a good fight, make sure that he doesn't leave this room. I'll be back for him."

"By the way you said that, I'm sure that you're going to paint this whole room red." Sabo regretted even coming up with the _idea_ of Boar when the mech gave a subtle nod while maliciously grinning. "Don't keep me waiting. Now duck."

Shadow instantly did so, the bolt of electricity barely missing his head. The attack struck the automatic doors behind the hedgie. Static filled the air for a moment and soon dissipated. Shadow slightly turned towards the sliding metal – wisely keeping his enemy within his sights – before backing into the doors. They stayed closed.

Sabo wanted to rip the robot's head off then and there. "You _imbecile!_ I programmed you to be intelligent! He's going to come after the _both_ of us!"

"I technically haven't wronged him or his group in any way, but you on the other hand…" Boar faced Shadow again, but the hedgehog wasn't there. "Huh. Guess he left."

Breathing slightly erratic, Sabo launched himself at those doors, punching the sturdy metal. They didn't open. He attempted to fit his fingers into the tiny grove, struggling to pull them apart. They didn't open. He unsheathed a kunai, lodging it where his fingers had been. He leaned against the weapon with all his might. They still didn't _open._

The kunai was held tight in his grip as he pulled away, seething. Sabo slowly turned towards Boar, who was seemingly enjoying what he was seeing. The robot produced a snort. "I'm glad that actually worked. It was a shot in the dark, really."

Sabo was a _millisecond_ away from chucking his kunai right in between both of that traitorous robot's eyes, but a sudden change stopped him. It was so subtle that he almost didn't notice it; however, Boar's reaction confirmed that he wasn't the only one who felt it.

The mech glanced down at himself, patting his metallic hide. "I don't feel tingly anymore." He focused on the frozen chameleon. "Do you know why?"

 _He doesn't feel…tingly…_ A lump formed inside Sabo's throat as he realized what happened. The Master Emerald's energy wasn't flowing through them anymore. It was gone. He didn't know how or why, but it was completely _gone_.

 _Why…is this happening? What…_

"Aaa _ahh!_ " he screamed when pain wracked his system again, electricity causing him to tense up. He crashed down onto his back. He couldn't stop shaking.

He barely noticed himself being straddled, Boar looming over him. Red opticals examined him. "Are you with me now? I lost you there." Sabo didn't answer him, too busy being in pain and too busy fighting the panic that held his heart in a tight grip. "So are you going to answer me, or what? I don't mind doing that again."

Once the chameleon had regained control of his vocal cords, he rasped, "W-We need to leave. Now."

Boar stared down at him for a moment, then, "Fine."

Sabo almost let out a sigh of relief. "A sudden…change of heart?"

The robot shrugged as he got off the reptile. "I wasn't going to keep you in here anyway. I was just giving him a little head start." The bot smirked. "This'll all be over way too soon if you were a sitting duck. And plus, I'm sure there's plenty of action up on the surface." Boar's opened his mouth and shot he doors again as Sabo sat up. A buzz hummed until the metal snapped open.

He was saved. He wasn't going to lose. He-

Sabo gasped when his covered hands were wrenched behind his back. He strained his neck, but he couldn't spot Boar's head. He could definitely hear the other's voice however.

"I could see the desperation in your eye, chameleon. You're planning on running off and not finishing this fight, aren't you?"

The purple Mobian took a deep breath to keep his voice steady and calm. "Why would I run? It doesn't matter how things are now, the odds are stacked in my favor."

"Right, because you _didn't_ have multiple panic attacks after those those doors were sealed."

Sabo exhaled harshly through his nose. "I'm not going to run."

"Not anymore, because…" Boar trailed off when a sound went off in the distance. It was loud and low and it was steadily coming closer. "…What is that?"

"Water," Sabo answered, barely keeping his voice from cracking, "Glass must've broken and water is rushing in and we need to leave _immediately._ "

"Why the hurry?" The chameleon tried to struggle out of the other's grip, but it was all for naught. "Seeing how Bat is still up and flying, aren't we all waterproof? Unless your little suit is subpar…"

The reptile spoke through gritted teeth. "Waterproof or not, the pure _force_ of it could possibly make my armor and your outer covering completely useless." _Especially now that the Master Emerald's energy disappeared. Dammit…_

"Solid point." Boar almost had to shout that, for the noise was _far_ too close for comfort.

He activated his jet boosters right as raging water flooded the room.

* * *

After reluctantly departing with his creator and that traitor Boar, Bat focused on the task he was given. He rose into the air and attempted to locate the runaways. The robot didn't have a single clue to where they went, but he knew that if he didn't find them, then he'd be made into scrap metal.

He scanned the area – pointedly ignoring the fight going in the far distance between Metal Sonic, a blue hedgehog, and a white hedgehog – aiming his attention at the rippling water. Bat had noticed the Mobian group diving into the nearly opaque substance. That was smart; they would be way more obvious in the air.

There went the bot's hopes of this being an easy find.

However, all was not lost, for he spotted some movement out of the corner of his eye. It was slight, but enough. It had been a sliver of green that had unintentionally breached the surface of the water. Bat whirled his head in that direction and zeroed in on the reptilian scales. They were only visible for a couple of seconds before disappearing.

Bat didn't have a need for that visual any more. He saw that his targets were heading for a tunnel cutting through the large wall he had been thrown off of. Not wanting them to get away and also not wanting to be prematurely spotted, Bat dived right into the water. The robot sliced through the liquid with ease with his – slightly twitchy – wings. He was seriously going to teach Boar a lesson about loyalty after this.

Farther up ahead, the fleeing Mobians all came up for air once they entered the tunnel. Rosy and TT were taking the deepest breaths, both panic and lack of oxygen having them nearly wheezing. Both crocodiles were relatively fine, and Espio let out a couple shallow coughs as he wiped the excess water from his face.

After calming back down, Rosy peered over her shoulder as VC dragged her forward in the water. She didn't see that chameleon trailing after them. Or Boar, who was…surprisingly helpful? "We're in the clear," she whispered to the others, preventing her voice from echoing against the tunnel walls.

"For n-now…" TT, who was on the other side of the croc, shifted his nervous gaze behind them as well. They were definitely in the lion's den now, and they couldn't let their guards down. Sabo could come out of nowhere and…

" _Please_ don't jinx us, kid. We need all of the good luck we can get." Vector sent the kit a pointed look before addressing the chameleon whose wrist he was holding on to. The croc swallowed thickly, hoping that his friend could confirm his guess. "Espio…your double was lying about Knuckles' group being dead, right?"

Espio nodded, and all who were present let out a sigh of relief. He knew that they wouldn't stay relaxed for long though. "He was lying." The reptile withheld a wince when he gingerly rubbed his wounded neck. "But…"

"But?" VC blinked at him. The good feeling was gone now. Espio's tone was suspiciously somber. "But what?"

The image of Red frozen on the floor made his jaw clench. "Knuckles and Rouge are down there fighting Rabbit, and Red…he's paralyzed."

At first, the only response he received was the quiet sloshing of the water as they swam through it, but then Rosy closed her gaping mouth and replied with a shaky voice, "He's…seriously…?" The pinkette searched Espio's face to see if this was some kind of sick joke. His expression was as serious as a heart attack. "What…happened?" She almost didn't want to know.

"I didn't witness it firsthand, for I was temporarily apart from them. From what I was told, Rabbit broke his back."

Rosy inwardly flinched as her heart sank. She couldn't even _begin_ to imagine how painful that would've felt. "Oh…" Any other words failed her.

"And…" Espio was hesitant to disclose the troubling bit of information resting on his tongue. He didn't want to come off as a pessimist; however, there was no point in keeping secrets. "When I found Shadow and Sonic down there, Shadow told me that it was Rabbit who had kidnapped them from that crater."

TT bit his bottom lip as his stomach anxiously churned. _So maybe…maybe Sabo wasn't lying at all? Are they…really…_

VC's next words basically mirrored the fox's thoughts. "So it's entirely possible that our friends are nothing but food for the flies." His grip on Rosy's and TT's wrists increased marginally. There was pressure, but no pain. "Just FANTASTIC."

"No." Vector shook his head. "I'm _completely_ positive that they are still alive! I dunno about Red, but Knuckles and Rouge have been through some CRAP and I'll be damned if they are defeated by some glorified bunny." The croc paused for a moment when the curving tunnel they were in straightened out, revealing at the end of it a slanted piece of land rising out of the water. It led to a sizable chunk of steady ground. He then continued, "I have no clue about what happened between Sonic and Shadow and that robot, but don't worry about Knuckles and Rouge. They're givin' their all!"

Espio nodded at his friend's words. "Knuckles is too stubborn to go down easily."

Rosy cracked a small smile at that, reassured by the Chaotix's words. TT and VC were slightly comforted as well. The group down there would survive. They had to.

"And if Shadow finds them down there…" VC couldn't help the snort that escaped his mouth as he imagined the hedgehog's and bunny's confrontation. Rabbit would be dealing with a dangerously rabid Shadow. "Then Red is getting healed, and they are definitely coming back up here with the bot's head."

Espio rose a curious brow at that. He was glad that the hedgehog rescue mission had been a success, but why had the striped one returned to the base?

Seeing the chameleon's confusion, Rosy filled him in. "Oh yeah, you don't know yet. Sil – I mean Grey, your Silver, and Penumbra saved Shadow and Sonic from that place. They…" She ousted that horrible visual. "They were pretty roughed up. It was bad."

TT picked it up from there. "But then th-they healed with Penumbra's help, and Shadow came up with a p-plan to find the Chaos emeralds that Sabo…took from them."

The puzzle pieces soon came together. "He wants to go…Super?" he assumed, and they confirmed it with nods. Espio felt some tension leave his shoulders. "That's good. I'm not sure how the increased strength would hold up to the robots, but if the Master Emerald plan is successful-"

"When," Vector interrupted unabashedly.

Espio corrected himself. "But when the Master Emerald plan is successful, the robots wouldn't stand a chance against him…or the others for that matter."

VC barked out a laugh, spirits lifted. "Sabo and his little henchmen are _so_ screwed."

Once he – along with a laughing Vector, a giggling Rosy, and a shyly snickering TT – all calmed back down, the small group had reached the shallow part of the water. The crocs released their tagalongs as they regained their footing, wading through the liquid until they had reached dry ground.

TT shook to rid himself of his soppy fur, and Rosy gasped before playfully nudging him. The fox gave her an apologetic smile; however, a yelp soon passed his lips when the pinkette copied his actions, spraying him with water as well. She knew that this was the _worst_ situation to lose focus, but she wanted to give her little brother a break from all the apprehension. It couldn't be healthy.

After that little bout of playfulness, Rosy gazed at the environment laid out in front of them. The stagnant water was murky, but the ripples caused by the wind reflected the sun's rays in various patterns. The pillars, the towers, and the bridges connecting the structures were worn down and cracked – some were missing chunks of stone. Nature had begun to reclaim them, mosses and vines interrupting the endless grey.

Now that they had a period of time to take everything in, Rosy did so. This was a drastic difference to the bright lights and busy streets of Station Square. Sonic and his friends visited these kind of places _often?_ Just wow…

"You know," she began, awestruck, "This place is really beautiful in its own way." If only they were here under different circumstances…

"It really is…" TT concurred, enraptured as well. However, his focus didn't linger on the landscape. The kit peered curiously over at the crocs and Espio, more specifically at the injury the chameleon had obtained. "S-So are…you okay, Espio?"

Said detective – he was unlike the others, deep in thought instead of taking in the view – rose his gaze from the patchy grass below and met concerned sapphires. He resisted the urge to rub at his neck again. It had stopped bleeding but still irritated. "…I've been better, but I'm fine."

Vector brought down a fist into the palm of his hand. "Speaking of you getting hurt, I say that since we had apparently lost him, we can sneak back and give that son of a bi…scuit the shock of a lifetime!"

Rosy nearly rolled her eyes at that censorship. It wasn't like she and TT had innocent ears. They had been around _Boom_ for Chaos' sake.

"Except we DON'T do that!" VC opposed, nearly hissing. "Do you hear yourself? Sneak attack or no, there is no way we can go up against that giant powered-up pile of poop. And I'm still iffy about Boar! Who _knows_ what he'll-"

"What should we do then?" Vector cut him off impatiently, crossing his arms. "Doing nothing down here is the same as doing nothing on _top_ of the wall!"

"I'm not…" VC rubbed his forehead stressfully. He didn't exactly have a Plan B in mind, but they sure as hell weren't going with Plan A. "I'm not sayin' that we do _nothing_ , but…"

"I've been thinking." Espio decided to end the argument before it escalated. He glanced at VC before settling on Vector. "It seems like my twin is sure that Rabbit will indeed complete her task." He didn't miss those subtle winces. "So, I doubt that he would reenter the base. Boar is a wildcard, but if we stealth into there, we will be able to help out Knuckles' group, if they need it."

"T-That's a s-solid plan you got th-th-there." The group of Mobians whirled around so fast that they almost lost their balance. Multiple gasps escaped their lips at the sight of a floating Bat, water dripping off of his metallic hide. They took a few hasty steps backwards when he grounded himself. "I-I have to st-stop it though. M-Master's orders."

All of Rosy's muscles were tense as she materialized the sole piko-piko hammer she had. She regretted not learning from Amy how to produce an infinite number of them. It _really_ would've been a helpful skill.

"Why are you here?" the pinkette asked as TT took a small step behind her, his yellow ears plastered against his skull. Rosy noticed the subtle twitches of the robot addressed. "I…I thought Boar-!"

A produced scoff interrupted her words. There were fists at Bat's sides now. "I-I don't want to _th-think_ about that s-stupid robot right n-now! H-He's a t-traitorous jerk! I-I swear wh-when I see him again…" he muttered that last part.

Espio heard those words anyway. He recalled how 'friendly' the robot was in Silver's and Blaze's story. Of course, that could mean absolutely nothing in this point in time, but… "You don't have to do what…your Master says. Shouldn't you go after the one who had hurt you instead of us?"

Bat actually seemed to ponder that for a moment. "I-I could…" He shook his head. "B-But then M-Master would g-get angry and then I'm r-random scraps on the g-ground." Bat eyed Espio, and his opticals flashed. "Y-You're the guy who t-tricked Metal? A-And…stole Boar?" The mech pointed an accusatory finger. "S-So _you're_ basically the r-reason he attacked me! Y-You corrupted h-him to be a good guy!"

"But is there anything WRONG with that?" VC was thinking that maybe, just maybe they could get the other on their side. Or if not, well they could just talk until the Master Emerald was shut off. This robot seemed like a talker, and that made sense if he took after Rogue.

"Y-Yes!" Bat animatedly gestured to himself. "B-Because we are on d-different sides, he _attacked_ me! E-Everything's wrong with th-that!"

Vector jumped on the bandwagon. This was _way_ better than fighting for their lives. "Where's Boar right now?"

Bat folded his arms a cross his hard chest. "P-Partnering with Master. W-Why?"

"Well…" Gears turned Vector's mind. "Well if he is, then isn't he a BAD guy now? And technically, you can't go after him if you two are on the same team." When Bat cocked his head at him, the croc kept his mouth moving. "But if you switched sides and be on _our_ team – in which you DON'T attack us – then you can properly take your revenge on Boar!"

Bat tapped his chin. "S-Switch sides…? M-Master would be m-mad, but…it m-makes sense…in a w-way?"

"Why would he be mad? Listen." Rosy couldn't actually believe that this was working. "Does he know that Boar attacked you?" Bat nodded. "That's great! Sab – your Master will punish him for that sooner or later! If you take the initiative instead of him, then you get brownie points!"

"…D-Do you really th-think he w-would appreciate it i-if I…?"

"Definitely!" Rosy chirped. _Definitely…not. Sabo will probably destroy him in a quick second. But hey, it's one less robot we have to worry about._

"Where are they now?" Espio inquired.

"Th-They're searching for…w-what were they called? Chaos e-emeralds. S-Searching for them in the b-base," Bat absently answered.

The chameleon's eye widened at that. _How did my twin know…?_ He glanced at the others and saw their shocked expressions.

"Boar heard all of the plan," Vector whispered to him, nearly silent.

Espio heavily exhaled. _Then Boar must've told Sabo. So we can't return to the base after all. And I hope Shadow finds the emeralds before those two do._ The detective then refocused on Bat, resuming their talk. "Now is a good time to retaliate. You know where Boar is located, but you don't know for how long. Boar is unpredictable. Who's to say that he won't run off after leaving the base? You would miss your chance."

"I-I…" Bat's right arm twitched. "H-How can I t-trust you? W-We're on different s-sides!"

"Are we?" Vector cracked a forced smile. He wouldn't be able to show genuine happiness until this robot was _out_ of their sight. "It's up to you!"

"I-It's up to m-me…" Bat murmured. The mech then paced back and forth in front of them, muttering to himself.

TT watched the robot for a while before speaking lowly to Rosy. "Do you think h-he'll actually leave us alone?"

"I guess we have to wait and see," she responded just as quietly, not taking her eyes off of Bat, "Just…be ready for anything okay? We can't drop our guard, not yet."

The kit nodded at her. "Right." He had to be ready to move at any moment. Bat could very easily decide to rush at them even after all that they said. Butterflies rammed against the walls of his stomach as he returned his attention to their adversary.

After two minutes ticked by, Vector opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when his double nudged him with his elbow. VC shook his head with an expression that said, 'Leave him be'. The more time that passed by, the better.

More time flew, and Bat finally ceased pacing. The Mobians wondered why it took five minutes for the bot to decide, but they weren't complaining.

"O-Okay…okay…" Bat's eyes swept over all of them. "I-I'll…go s-settle things with that j-jerk." The heroes fought to keep from celebrating. "B-But…" The rising mood stilled. Bat gestured to the Mobians. "Y-You all have t-to hide. M-Master can't s-see you because I'm going to tell him th-that I killed all of you."

Vector clasped his hands together. "That's easy enough! We'll be ghosts! You _won't_ see us, that's a promise!"

"Th-That's not all." Bat spread his wings as he peered down at his fingers. "I-I need _s-some_ blood on my hands, d-don't I?"

VC's breath hitched. Things were suddenly going downhill, fast. "What-?"

Bat didn't answer, for he was already speeding forward.

Right for Rosy.

The pinkette shouted in alarm, having almost no time to swing her hammer. She missed. Bat dodged by increasing his altitude a bit. Rosy gaped at him as he flew over her, and a lump lodged itself in her throat when he picked her up by her head, covering her ears with her hands.

Rosy screamed in panic as she was lifted off the land and shot up into the sky. Her abandoned hammer was laying forgotten on the ground. The hedgehog put her hands on the robot's arms, trying to get them to let her go. It wasn't working, and she was _terrified._

She barely heard the yells of her name from down below, her fear drowning them out. She wasn't loud enough however to cover up Bat's words.

"Th-This'll be easier if you j-just let it happen." Bat advised, but it didn't stop her from kicking him. Like that did anything. The robot glanced down to see the fox flying up straight for them with tears in his eyes that contradicted the determined expression on his face. It wasn't like he was going to _kill_ her or anything. "I-It'll be over quick. I-If Master accidentally f-finds you, th-then I have to make it l-look like I tried, r-right?"

"Let me _go!"_ she shouted.

"I-In a s-second," he replied, forcing the center of his palms to open up.

"Tails! Hel – _ahhhh!_ "

Bat blasted air into her ear canals, and she screamed bloody murder. He increased the pressure until she blacked out from the pain…until a red substance streamed down both sides of her face.

"Th-That should be enough." Bat stopped the flow and let the pinkette go. The fox should catch her.

TT grunted when he caught Rosy in his arms. "Amy!" he cried, tears pricking his eyes. She didn't answer him. "Amy! Please…" She was still breathing, but…but there was so much _blood_. Stormy sapphires raised to watch Bat smear red on his fingers and arms. TT tightened his grip on his sister. "Wh…What did you do to her?!"

The robot disregarded his question altogether. "P-Perfect! N-Now if you g-guys stay completely out of s-sight, things sh-should go smoothly!" With that, Bat sped up and over the wall, disappearing from view.

TT was shaking. He didn't know why. It could be the gut wrenching fear, or it could be rage that was setting fire to his veins. Maybe it was both. That burning feeling was so foreign however. It was always sadness or terror that filled his body, never anger…

The fox shook the unexpected and uncharacteristic urge to fight that robot until he regretted being built.

His breaths were shallow and rapid as he looked down at Rosy's face, her expression twisted into one of pain. Blood was staining his fur. She needed help _now._

The kit dived back down toward the reptiles, who were staring up at him – at her – in muted shock and horror. His cheeks were soaking wet when he planted his feet on the ground, and sobs were forcing their way out of his throat. Loud and concerned voices swirled around him. He paid no attention. She was seriously hurt and…and…

"…happened?!"

"Was it…vibrations? …what…"

"…track him down!"

"With her like this?! No we…"

"TT…TT? Tails!"

The fox snapped back into focus when a hand squeezed his shoulder. An amber iris searched his dull blues. "We need to go," Espio said, "We have to get help for her."

"We have to f-find Shadow or Penumbra," TT's voice was raspy, throat raw.

VC bit his lip. "But remember what Bat said? We can't-"

"Then Espio can go then!" Vector couldn't tear his eyes off the unconscious pinkette. What exactly did the robot _do_ to her? "He won't get caught."

The chameleon nodded before uttering, "Shadow is most likely still in the base, and that's the most hazardous place at the moment. I'll have to locate Penumbra then." Espio glanced up the wall behind them, his gaze zipping across the nearly ancient surface. "I'll climb this to have a better vantage point." The purple reptile jumped and stuck to the rough structure with his hands and feet jammed into jagged holes. "Wait here until I come back." Espio then nodded at TT. "It won't be long."

"Please hurry…" The kit didn't have it in him to speak above a hushed whisper.

At that plead, Espio turned invisible. The only evidence of his climb was the occasional crumbling stone.

TT dropped to his knees, a rock digging slightly into his skin. He didn't pay it any mind. Another hand clamped down on his shoulder, and he heard more words. They were probably words of comfort, but he didn't know. He was blocking them out. He was too lost in the devastating tornado he called his thoughts.

 _She…She's hurt… But why? Why? She hadn't done anything! She doesn't deserve this! She was just protecting me and…and…it could've been me. If I hadn't…cowered behind her…she…would've been fine… Chaos…she would've been fine! If I was the one in front of her then…I'd be…_

But he didn't care about that. He would more than _gladly_ switch positions with her.

TT wiped some of his tears away, replacing them with blood.

Rosy got hurt because she was protecting him. Well, he would make sure that she never got hurt like this again.

* * *

Shadow gazed at the closed doors with a frown, his fingers clenched around the half-powered Chaos emeralds. He severely disliked leaving that wicked reptile in there, but he didn't have a choice. Shadow wasn't going to risk fighting a that super-powered chameleon a second time especially since Boar was in the room as well. It didn't matter that the robot had listened to him; mech was potentially dangerous, and fighting in such close quarters wasn't a great set up for victory.

And if – more like when – that Espio somehow escapes, he would be waiting for the chameleon outside.

Tearing his attention from those doors, Shadow pushed his newly healed body forward. As much as he wanted to make the reptile regret ever meeting him, the hedgehog knew that now wasn't the best time. So instead, he skated in the direction of the Master Emerald.

Rouge, Knuckles, Red, and Espio (not now though, its seemed) were down on this level as well. He was planning to assist in any way he could, for they could be facing off against Rabbit. A scowl slid on his muzzle when he remembered his first encounter with that damned bunny. _That win was a fluke. She had the element of surprise on her side and-_

Shadow paused momentarily when the gems in his palms unexpectedly glowed brighter. He blinked in slight awe of them. The jewels were…back to normal. So did that mean…? Shadow peered down the hallway he had turned onto, attempting and failing to locate the Master Emerald. The echidnas had done it. They shut it down.

The Ultimate Lifeform stared at the gems some more before glancing over his shoulder in the direction he had come. Should he go back to that room and…No, no he shouldn't. Knuckles, Rouge, and Red had been fighting Rabbit, and there were no doubt injures. Shadow could easily return to that chameleon afterwards.

Nodding to himself, Shadow took a step forward and furrowed his brow when he felt a rumble under his feet. He didn't get any time to think about that anomaly though, because another one took up most of his thoughts. He heard…What was that? Was it…water? Was the place flooding?

The thundering roar in the distance was his answer.

Instead of turning back or teleporting the hell out of the base like anyone else would've done, Shadow skated for the doors at the end of the hall. The water was coming from the direction of the Master Emerald. Shadow didn't know why water was rushing in, but he could bet that Rabbit had something to do with it.

The trio could be in serious danger and running out of precious air as well.

The striped hedgehog bolted for the automatic doors. When they slid open, he expected to continue on his way, _not_ to crash into the floor after colliding with something hard and…furry?

Shadow had been caught too off guard to prevent himself from landing on his side. He grunted in discomfort before climbing hastily back onto his feet and finding out exactly what he ran over. His eyes marginally widened when he realized that it had been one of the echidnas.

The red Mobian was still getting his feet under him, wincing as he rubbed at the bruises on his chest. Ruby orbs examined the other, finding purple splotches littering his whole body along the less common burn marks. Shadow couldn't tell which guardian it was, but he figured that he would find that out later. The echidna had been _running_ from something after all.

Shadow had a suspicion to what it was.

"Is the place flooding?" His words were fired out. Going by the near deafening roar constantly growing louder, they were on a time crunch. The echidna was panting so hard that forming comprehensible sounds seemed like an impossibility. The guardian didn't answer him, but instead trained his spent – and borderline frenzied – gaze on the Chaos emeralds.

Shadow watched as the other stumbled over his own feet – _how fast and long had he been running?_ – before grabbing the hedgehog's forearm. The Ultimate Lifeform rose a brow at the questionable action. The echidna let out a string of dry coughs as he pointed to something behind Shadow.

The hedgie followed the red mammal's finger, which was trained on the set of doors on the opposite side of the reflective room Shadow had stumbled into. Thinking that the other was telling him to go in that direction, Shadow shifted his weight so he could blast off, but the increased grip on his arm prevented him from doing so.

A tad bit annoyed, he frowned at the echidna. The guardian must've had enough time to regain some of his breath, because he choked out, "Just…wait. They're coming…" He leaned closer to Shadow when the noise almost became unbearable. "Rouge is carrying Red." That solve the identification mystery. "He shut down the Master Emerald, but he's…" Knuckles glimpsed down at the glowing gems in Shadow's possession. "Just be prepared to use those."

Shadow subtly nodded, mentally preparing himself. There was a chance that what he saw wasn't going to be pretty.

Not long after, those slabs of metal along the way revealed Rouge flying like a bat straight out of hell. She saw the standing duo immediately, and she made a bee-line for them. In her arms was Red, and he didn't look too bad. He was out cold, and he had a bit of blood on his lips.

"Shadow!" she yelled, but said hedgehog only knew so because he had read her lips. The roar was all encompassing now. Peering behind the bat, he understood why. Raging water rushed into the room as well, not caring about any person or thing it swallowed up. It was a death trap.

As soon as Rouge had gotten close enough, Shadow teleported them out of there before they all got swept away.

When they reappeared, they were standing in front of the government jet Rouge had borrowed, where Shadow had left the group of heroes to go jewel hunting. After a tired Rouge had quickly and carefully laid Red on the ground, the hedgehog dropped to one knee, ready to get to work.

"Wait hon." Shadow paused when Rouge – with the gentlest touch possible – slowly flipped Red onto his stomach. He rose a brow in question, and the bat sighed. "It's his back. It's broken and he's…paralyzed from the waist down."

Paralysis? Shadow expected many things, but not that.

Knuckles, who was heavily leaning on the plane, must've sensed his surprise. "Rabbit did it, but we don't have to worry about that damned robot anymore." Shadow inwardly scowled at that. He was more than content that Rabbit was out of commission, but she just _had_ to leave a mark before she went. "You can…fix him right?"

"I've never worked on someone injured to this degree," Shadow set the two emeralds down beside him, "but the emeralds should let me heal his spine and any damaged nerves." He let the energy flow into his palms, and he flattened them on Red's back. He moved them until he believed he found the break. "He should be able to walk when I'm done."

Rouge sunk down to the ground, her wings exhausted and droopy. "That's great news…" She crossed her stiff legs and leaned back on her hands, stretching a bit. "You are a literal lifesaver, sugar. For all of us."

Shadow bobbed his head a bit at that as he worked. He knew how close tragedy was to striking. "I'm assuming Rabbit caused that?"

"Yeah," Knuckles replied, "She cracked the glass before she fully stopped worki – Eggman?"

The hedgehog and bat blinked before following the guardian's line of sight, eventually zeroing in on the doctor. He was sitting off to the side with a long and sharp quill sticking out of his knee. Blood was pooling under him.

Shadow resumed the healing process – he had paused when he had lost focus – and narrowed his eyes at the human. The bald man was the only one from the larger group left up here. Something had occurred, but what? Was the doctor's injury the result of the four robots finding the heroes after Shadow left?

Rouge was the one to ask. "And what happened to you, doctor?"

The human, who had probably been staring at them this whole time, let out a deep sigh. "That pile of trash, otherwise known as Boar." Eggman hissed when he pointed to the metal quill, accidentally touching it in the process.

"Boar?" Knuckles gritted his teeth. "Why am I even surprised? I _knew_ that that bot would pull something-!"

"What happened after we left?" Rouge inquired, head tilted somewhat.

Shadow decided to help the human out. "Sonic and I were rescued by the Silvers and Penumbra. Boar then revealed our location to Metal Sonic, Bat, the other Omega, and Psy. I had the idea to go Super, so I Chaos Controlled into the base to collect the emeralds that chameleon stole. Continue from there, doctor."

Eggman stroked his mustache, careful to not jar his leaking injury. "Well…those four robots did come up here. Your allies split up to do whatever they can against them. I was left with Boar and…" The man dropped his hand. "You have to destroy that robot at all costs. He's ruthless and unpredictable. He also has _zero_ sense of loyalty…" he mumbled hatefully under his breath.

"We're going to destroy all of those robots." Knuckles punched his palm, glowering. "None of them are leaving this place, _especially_ Boar." Shadow looked over at the echidna, lips curved downwards. How Knuckles talked…it was like he had some kind of history with Boar that Shadow didn't. Hm…

"So…he stabbed you?" Rouge eyed the quill. "And you didn't do anything to deserve it?"

"No!" Eggman denied indigently. "I…I just brought up the fact that we could _die_ here if we stayed, and told him to get me out of here! In response, he shoved this thing into my leg and told me to 'enjoy the show'. Word for word."

"Well that doesn't sound ominous or anything," Rouge stated, back to watching Shadow work on Red. "Where is he now?"

"How should I know?" Eggman huffed. "I disowned that bag of bolts as soon as he _attacked_ me!" There was a pause before the doctor resumed, quieter, "…I am next in line, right? For the healing treatment?"

Shadow set his jaw as he debated, hands leisurely massaging. "You're part of the reason all of this happened, doctor. Why in the _hell_ should I do anything for you?"

Eggman gaped before jabbing a finger at the collar around his neck even though Shadow couldn't see the gesture. "I was a _slave_ in there! Do you think I would've taken that rotten chameleon in if I had known that _this_ was the outcome?"

"Why should I believe you? I don't know what went on in that base," Shadow replied testily, "Other than the fact that you helped in the construction of those damn robots."

Eggman growled, shaking a fist. "This is why I _hate_ all of you rodents!"

Rouge rolled her eyes and Knuckles scoffed. Shadow had heard that phrase so many times that those words meant nothing to him, not that they ever did. The trio didn't reply to the man's outburst, and now Eggman was brooding in pain by himself. His health wasn't in terrible danger.

No one said anything for a moment – Shadow healing diligently – until Knuckles let his gaze wander. "I wonder were Espio is." The echidna glared at nothing in particular. "Both of them."

His answer came calling not a couple seconds later.

"Knuckles! Shadow!" Four pairs of eyes swiveled in the direction of the familiar voice. At first, they saw nothing, but then a purple chameleon made himself visible. He was sprinting over to them. Knuckles, more relieved than he was seconds before, held up a hand in greeting. However, he halted midway. Something was wrong, he could tell it in the detective's expression.

"Rouge." Espio greeted the bat as he slowed his approach to a stop before them. He didn't verbally speak to Eggman. His lips curved downwards at the metal lodged into flesh, but they leveled out when he saw Red on the ground. A multitude of emotions crossed the chameleon's face until relief won out. "You found him…"

The echidna crossed his arms as he looked the reptile over. There was obviously something on the other one's mind. "I'm glad that you somehow got away from your double, but something's seriously troubling you." Another hidden emotion was swirling underneath the happiness, he just didn't know what. "What is it?"

"I…" Espio compared a mental picture of Rosy to the visual of Red in front of him. The pinkette was bleeding, but…was her condition worse than the echidna's? He…didn't think it was. Paralysis was devastating. He disliked that he had to make this decision; Penumbra was nowhere to be found, so… "I'll wait until you're done with him, Shadow. You need to focus."

"Now you've grabbed my attention, detective." Shadow locked eyes with him before returning his gaze to his patient. "Spit it out."

There was no point in holding his tongue now. Shadow wasn't going to give Red his full focus until he told. Espio parted his lips. "Bat found TT, Rosy, VC, Vector, and I." He was going to go ahead and rip the band-aid off. "We convinced the robot to leave us alone-" That rose surprised brows. "-but he rushed Rosy before he left."

The way his voice lowered at the end raised mental red flags.

Rouge almost didn't want to ask, her ears unconsciously lowering. "Is…is she…?"

Espio communicated a negative. "No, it's…she's very much alive. Bat did something to her ears, I couldn't see what. She bleeding but…" He gestured down at Red. "She can wait. He needs help more help at the moment."

"Are you completely sure?" Shadow was going to make someone search high and low for Penumbra if the chameleon wasn't.

"Yes." Espio was positive. By the time they found Penumbra, Shadow would already be done with Red.

Shadow scanned the reptile, searching for any hesitation. He found none. He eventually conceded. "After I finish him, we go to her."

Espio silently nodded.

Eggman then spoke up. "So I'm guessing that I just got pushed to the back of the line?"

He was ignored again.

* * *

 **Man, things are really not going well for these guys, huh? Well, at least Sabo got a taste of the heroes' bad luck!**

 **Next chapter…the real battle royale part two!**


	42. Chapter 42

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.**

 **These chapters get longer and longer I swear…**

 **Chapter 42- Rollercoaster**

"No…she's…alive…ears…bleeding."

"Are…completely sure?"

"Yes."

"After I finish…we go…her."

"…So I'm guessing that I just…pushed to the…of the line?"

Red softly groaned as he regained consciousness, his fuzzy mind trying to place where he was and whose those floating voices belonged to. The last thing he remembered was…was…oh. The last thing he remembered was pain, most definitely, but before that…he shut down at the Master Emerald in the underwater base. So he was still in that same room, or was he? His cheek was resting against a rough surface, not tile. There was a pleasant heat surrounding him that couldn't be anything but natural, and there was a gentle breeze weaving through his short fur.

He was outside then.

"Don't move."

And that was Shadow's voice, he was sure. It made sense, because there was a weird sensation on his back that felt incredible. This meant many things. Red was getting healed, Shadow's and Sonic's rescue mission had been a success, and since the hedgehog didn't sound distraught, Rouge and Knuckles must be fine. Either they defeated Rabbit, or Shadow showed up just in time to get them all the hell out of there. Red was hoping for the former.

He exhaled shakily, wincing at the harsh reminder that his back wasn't the only thing broken. His ribs had to be too, especially after that nasty stomp. "No…problem," he finally rasped. Red peeled his eyes open and instantly hissed when the sudden light burned them. Red blinked the blurriness away, and Shadow's form came into focus. All of the hedgie's attention was on his spine. "Staying still's what I do…" Or used to, anyway.

Shadow let out a quiet scoff. Ruby orbs never strayed from Red's injury.

"Well, you sure didn't sit still earlier hon." Rouge's voice emitted from the other side of him. He really didn't feel like turning his head. "If you hadn't, our fight against Rabbit would probably still be going on."

So the bunny was destroyed, Red deduced. Good. One down, many more to go. Speaking of them…

"Shadow." A black ear twitched. The echidna coughed a bit before continuing, "While you were down there with us, did you see any of the other robots?" _Hopefully you took care of any that you saw. The less left, the better._

"Most likely not," Knuckles said somewhere from behind him, "Since the rest of our friends are fighting the rest of them right now." It was only then that Red realized that they were back on the wall, and that a multitude of voices were missing. A frown marred his face. They should all be okay, but…given what happened to himself…

"Actually, I saw one." Shadow stopped Red's train of thought. As the red Mobian received the best massage he'd had in his life, the hedgehog explained. "I met Boar when I was gathering the emeralds, and the other Espio."

"You met my double?" Red released a relieved breath when Espio spoke. He was alive. He had gotten away. They didn't need any more corpses around here. Innocent ones at least.

Shadow nodded at the chameleon out of Red's sight. "I didn't fight him. He was locked in a room on the bottom level as the place flooded."

"Flooded?" Red and Espio chorused at the same time Rouge and Knuckles repeated, "Locked?"

"He and Boar found me in the room holding the emeralds. Boar…seems to have his own incentives because he kept the chameleon inside when I asked him to." Shadow's gaze shifted from Rouge to Red. "The base flooded soon after because Rabbit cracked one of the windows."

"So…" Many thoughts were dancing around in Red's head. "…Is he dead?" _Is it over?_

"No." Shadow's tone was sure; Red shouldn't have gotten his hopes up. "I don't doubt that he'll find a way out, if he hadn't already done so." The striped hedgie then leaned back from him. "Can you move your legs?"

Red could feel the concrete under his knees; that was a good sign. The echidna lifted his head bit – guessing that he was allowed to move – and peered over his shoulder at his legs. He focused on his left one. _Alright. Please move…now!_ The limb jerked, and the knee bent. A ton of weight was lifted off his shoulders as a breathy laugh escaped his lips. However, his elation was cut short when Shadow grabbed one of his wrists and hauled him up to his feet.

The echidna was not ready for that rash decision, and he would've fell right on his face if Shadow hadn't been in the way. Red's legs were shaking a bit as the hedgehog held his arms in a steady and firm grip. "Can you stand?" the rodent questioned.

" _Now_ you ask me that," Red groused, covering his mouth when his chest twisted and coughs forced their way up. Lowering his hand, he saw that there was blood on it.

Shadow noticed as well, his brow creasing. Gloved fingers positioned themselves over the echidna's chest. Red felt his breathing getting stronger by the second. When Shadow pulled away, it was like he never had broken anything.

"You didn't answer my question," Shadow pushed.

A spark of annoyance lit inside Red. "Would you wait a second? I just recovered from paralysis. Where's the fire?" The tremble in his legs began to wane.

Shadow's stare flickered over to Espio before returning to Red's face. The echidna turned his head out of curiosity and saw the chameleon looking somewhere off in the distance. He was tense. "You're not the only one in need of my services."

That spark was quickly snuffed out and replaced with wariness. "Who?" Red kept his balance with effort when Shadow let him go, apparently the echidna's slow response to the inquiry was a 'yes' in his book. Red then realized that there was someone behind the hedgehog. He peeked around him and grunted at the sight of a wounded Eggman. That had to hurt; however, Red was surprised that Shadow was going to heal him to be honest. "You're going to heal the doctor?"

"No." Shadow responded, and there was low growl from the human that wasn't acknowledged. "Espio told me that Rosy is injured, and we need to get to her."

Red blinked. Rosy? As in the Amy he knew best? Oh _no._ The echidna stumbled away from Shadow, jaw clenched. "She's in trouble? Then why the hell were you working on me instead of healing her?"

There was a hand on his shoulder. "Don't get mad at him, sugar." Rouge patted him once before withdrawing. "Espio told us that she wasn't in immediate danger. You, on the other hand, I would've put in that category."

Red pinched his nose and sighed. "Yeah, sorry. I just…" _All of this has been too stressful. When all of this is over with, I'm going to become a recluse and sleep my days away. If I can…_

"It's fine." Shadow grabbed the two emeralds on the ground and addressed Espio. "Lead the way."

The chameleon hesitated a moment. "Red, will you be able to keep-"

The echidna waved him off. "Don't worry about me. Take us to her."

Espio nodded before doing just that.

* * *

 _Where are they?_

 _Where are they?_

 _Where_ _ **are**_ _they?!_

That phrase repeated itself rapidly in TT's mind as he cradled Rosy's upper half in his lap. Sapphire irises didn't stay in one place for long, snapping back and forth between the pinkette's unconscious body and his surroundings. The fox was slightly rocking, his tails thumping anxiously against the ground.

Her bleeding had slowed, but it was nowhere near stopping. TT's gloves were almost completely stained, not that he cared. _Where…Where…Where…Where…?_ He would've used his communicator to talk to Espio, but he'd lost the thing somewhere in the water.

VC was sitting beside the kit, jouncing his knee up and down. The croc had positioned himself close to the kid to provide _some_ amount of comfort and assurance, but seeing the way TT was nearly breaking down, he knew nothing short of Espio's return would calm him.

The croc understood why. He was highly worried about the pinkette himself, and the bond he had with her was nowhere close to TT's. This had to be tearing the fox up inside.

"Tails…" The fox sniffed before glancing over at him. His eyes were red, irritated, and glossed over. VC gave a smile that the fox gave no response to. "She's goin' to be fine, alright? Espio will come back with Nummy and she'd get all fixed up. And then we can all go kick some robotic butt, yeah?"

TT wiped his cheeks, smearing the blood that was already there. Those dull sapphire orbs returned to the hedgehog like VC hadn't said anything. The croc inwardly sighed. _Come on chameleon. Where are you?_ VC then focused on his standing double, who was pacing back and forth to the side. He was muttering something under his breath about Espio. He also caught the words 'long' and 'trouble'.

Piecing them together, VC inwardly cursed. Espio being in danger was a big possibility. Maybe that's why he was taking so long? So then what-

His thoughts scrambled when a broken groan filled the air. Both crocs whipped their heads towards Rosy while TT gasped, leaning closer to the girl's face.

"Amy? Amy!" The fox cradled her head as Vector stepped closer. She was wearing a pained grimace, and TT wished that he could do something to make it go away. He swallowed thickly when she put her hands over her ears, a pitiful whimper escaping her throat. _It should've been me,_ TT thought. "We-We're getting you help." His tone was softer. His yell must've had hurt her.

There was no sign that Rosy had heard him at first. But then her eyes fluttered open and stared right at TT. "T…Tails…?"

The kit barely managed a smile. "I'm here Amy. I kn-know that it hurts but-" His smile instantly melted away when his sister's expression morphed into one of pure unadulterated _horror._ "Wha…What is it?" TT had a _bad_ feeling about this. She was in pain, but that was no reason to be terrified. Why was she…?

His answer was in the form of a sob. "I-I can't hear my own voice!" Tears streamed out of her eyes as she grabbed the fox's chest fur with shaky fingers. "Tails, I c-can't hear you…I can't hear _anything._ I'm… _I-I'm…_ "

 _Deaf._

 _She's deaf._

No. No. She couldn't be… He had misheard that, right? There was no way. Neck stiff, TT turned his head to see VC covering his mouth in shock and to see Vector gaping at Rosy like he couldn't believe what he had just heard.

The fox's heart dropped, and he couldn't stop the dam from breaking. TT hugged Rosy hard, weeping as much as she was. Guilt festered inside him like a parasite. It didn't matter if her condition was temporary, it was his fault that she was like this. If he hadn't been such a _coward_ all this time, then…

The vulpine squeezed her, and she wrapped her trembling arms around him, squeezing back. She buried her face in his fur, a bloodied ear right next to his mouth. Words spilled out even though she wouldn't – couldn't understand. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so _sorry_." _It's my fault…_

"Hey…TT…" Slightly unfocused blue irises drifted over to Vector. In his periphery, VC was glaring at the ground. The Chaotix member continued softly after clearing his throat. "Can't you…tell her that help is coming? She should be able to read your lips…"

The kit tore himself out of his dark thoughts to comprehend the reptile's words. "Okay…" he breathed out as he loosened his hold on Rosy. He leaned back, and she reluctantly did too. It was heartbreaking to see her puffy eyes, lowered ears, and shaking body. TT was out of his element here; _he_ was the one who usually got consoled. It…It was time to change that.

He pointed to his lips. Rosy wiped her tears only for them to be instantly replaced. "L-Lip reading?" TT nodded, and she sniffed. "I'll try…"

The fox made sure his message was clear. "Espio is getting Nummy so he can heal you. Did you get that?"

The way Rosy perked up a bit told him that she had understood.

TT then nearly jumped when VC's angry shout impinged his ears. "Where in the HELL are they?!"

Rosy _did_ jump out of her skin when a group of Mobians suddenly appeared in front of them. It was Espio, Rouge, Knuckles, Red, and Shadow…no Nummy. It didn't matter though, because both could do the same thing, and…and she just wanted to hear her brother again.

The fox scrambled to his feet at the others' appearance. Ignoring the first question that popped into his mind – _Did you turn off the Master Emerald?_ – he wanted to ask the more important one, but VC beat him to it.

"What took you so long?!" The croc had hopped up to his feet as well, aiming his question at Espio.

Espio switched his gaze off Rosy and onto the green Mobian. He gestured to Red, who as somewhat paling at the amount of blood on the pinkette. "I didn't find Penumbra. Red was paralyzed from the waist down; Shadow was healing him."

"Paralyzed?" Vector eyed Red. "What happened-?"

"It doesn't matter!" TT cut off any potential answers, stepping up to Shadow. They couldn't waste any more time. " _Please_ heal her! She's…" He took a steadying breath. "She's deaf and…"

"Deaf?!" was chorused by the unknowing Mobians.

Shadow snapped his attention to Rosy, whose ears were plastered against her head. She looked frustrated, knowing that they were talking, but there was a barrier. A barrier the striped hedgehog had to take away immediately.

"You're not kidding…" Knuckles commented, noticing the same thing Shadow had.

TT's namesakes fluffed out in agitation. "W-Why would I _joke_ about this?" Knuckles blinked at him in slight surprise before holding his hands up innocently. "Please Shadow…" he said, returning to the black anthro, "…heal her!"

Shadow nodded at him, approaching the sitting pinkette.

Rosy stood up when he got close. The hedgehog placed the Chaos emeralds he had on the ground before cupping the base of her ears. Sharp rubies bored into her damp jades, but she didn't hold the stare when a pleasant warmth replaced the pain in her head. She closed her eyes to fully enjoy the feeling. She waited for the moment when the world's sounds returned to her.

They never did.

Rosy's eyes flew open when Shadow pulled away. _He's...He's done? No! He can't be done!_ The striped hedgie was saying something to her, but she was too distracted by the fact that she still couldn't _hear_ to read the other's lips. The pain was gone; the most important thing was missing too.

Shadow was frowning now, and her heart was thudding painfully against her chest. More tears welled up in her eyes, and without thinking, she reached out and grabbed Shadow's wrists. She guided them back to her ears. The male began to tug his hands back, but she made him pause by saying, "I…still can't…" Or at least, she hoped she said it. She could be sounding like a fool and she had no _idea_ and-

Shadow must've understood, for he stopped fighting it. Rosy felt the warmth again. She didn't close her eyes this time, watching as TT walked back over. She locked gazes with her wide-eyed brother, and when the warmth disappeared again, tears streamed down her cheeks once more. She slowly shook her head at the fox, feeling empty.

She…hadn't ever seen TT get this angry before.

She could tell that he was yelling. Shadow didn't...he didn't deserve it. He didn't do it on purpose, right? No, because he almost looked as distraught as her brother. The rest were as still as statues, well, until TT threw himself at Shadow. VC grabbed him before he could do any damage. TT thrashed in the croc's grip. He was still yelling…and maybe sobbing. She wasn't…sure. She had to calm him down though. She had to…

"Tails." Air passed her lips. Her brother went limp as he looked at her. The rage, the disbelief, the _sorrow_ was palpable from here. "It's okay…I'm...f..fi…" Rosy collapsed on her knees, hiding her face with her hands as tears dripped down her arms.

She was never going to hear herself cry again.

"Let me go." When he wasn't released, TT glanced up at VC. His voice broke. "I-I need to…just please…"

The croc didn't have it in him to refuse to kid. If he unhinged again, then someone else was going to have to grab him. The fox stumbled a bit as he returned to Rosy's side, sitting down and wrapping his tails around her along with his arms. They leaned into each other.

Rouge had been through plenty of pain, but this…was all too much. She managed to tear her gaze from the pair, settling it on Shadow. He was staring down at his hands. "Shadow…What…? Why didn't it-"

"I…" He let out a harsh exhale. "I can't heal what's not there."

Red had his arms crossed. His face was blank, but his fingers were digging into his arms. "What does that mean? My _mobility_ was gone and you fixed that right up."

It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Red was a little more than ticked off. "Because I mended your bones and spinal cord. The pieces were there; I just needed to put them back together." Shadow bobbed his head at Espio. "She…is like him. I couldn't save his sight because his eye wasn't functional anymore. If you lost an arm, I can't make you grow a new one."

Red ran a quivering hand down his face while Knuckles growled out, "This happened because of Bat. Because of that _damn_ chameleon!" He whirled around and punched the wall, loosening some stones.

Nobody else talked for a moment; Rosy's cries were gut-wrenching.

Espio hated to do this, but they couldn't just stand here. They were close to winning this, and they couldn't let it slip through their fingers. _My double deserves all he's going to get, and more._ "We can't…stop here." Multiple pairs of eyes focused on him, even TT's. "This is a horrible tragedy, but…"

"I know," Shadow said. They needed to move. He refocused on the siblings, jaw clenching. _You'll get your revenge._ "You two stay here and out of sight while-"

"N-No." TT interrupted him. His fur was matted from the blood and tears, but his stare was more determined than Shadow had ever seen it. "We're not doing nothing. I-I'm _tired_ of doing nothing…" He glanced at Rosy before resuming, "I don't care what we have to do, but we're doing something. I'll protect her…i-if that's what your worried about… I won't let her get hurt again."

Shadow knew the kit wasn't going to take no for an answer. Might as well stop this argument before it started.

"Alright. Let's go end this then."

* * *

Being slapped in the face like he was nothing but a fly would've been highly embarrassing if pain hadn't replaced every other feeling in his body.

Sonic flipped head over heels until he crashed into one of the few standing pillars left. He loudly hissed as his battered body took on more damage. _Chaos…_ The speedster shoved his fingers into holes in the stone to not fall into the watery death trap below. _I really should've let Penumbra heal me a_ _ **bit**_ _more because this…is way harder than it should be._

"Hey!" he shouted over his shoulder, finding his current fighting partner. "I thought you were gonna hold him!"

When Sonic found the hedgie he was looking for, the slight irritation he felt melted away. Grey was rubbing his temples, features twisted into a grimace. The psychic barely avoided a laser shot from Metal and replied, "Well I tried! My headache…gah…is back! Stupid Bokkun, stupid explosion – whoa!" The beam had gotten too close that time, singeing a couple of Grey's quills.

The blue hero gritted his teeth as he watched the white Mobian weave around Metal's attacks. Grey was slowing down, and – Sonic hated to admit it – he was slowing too. It's just because this fight was so _different_. Usually, progress was made, there was an end in sight. But here…they were just stalling. They were playing a dangerous game of tag.

 _C'mon…Knux, Shadow! Somebody let me do what I do best!_

Sonic's stamina was normally off the charts, but now, he was running on fumes. He couldn't let Metal see that though. No way. He was just going to have to push until the time was right.

For example, it was time for him to push off these rocks before his insides were vaporized.

Sonic let go just as the red-hot laser carved through the part of the pillar he was hanging onto. After thinking that getting hit with the beam was the _last_ thing he ever wanted to do, the hedgehog frantically reached out to keep from taking an unwanted swim…even though swimming to momentarily lose Metal wasn't a terrible idea. _Curse my stupid aquaphobia._

The speedster managed to catch himself on the rugged stone, his fingers straining, only to be yanked off his safety net by metallic claws latching onto his right leg. Sonic cried out in surprise as he hung upside down, dangling helplessly.

Metal stared down at him banefully, and Sonic forced a snarky grin as blood rushed to his head. _Grey? Where are you? Need some help over here! Did I miss something?_ "Mind lettin' me go, Metal? Can't really have a fair fight like this!"

The lookalike dug into his skin; Sonic's grin became shaky. Metal's red opticals flashed. "You call this a fight, annoying copy? This is target practice for me. For you, it is a massacre." Sonic didn't get a chance to fabricate a retort. Metal swiftly spun around and smashed the hero into the same column of rock. The speedster didn't have enough time to realize how much excruciating pain he was in, for his world was a blur again.

The next thing he knew, pain blossomed in his jaw, blood filled his mouth, and he was surrounded by murky water. Fear encompassed his soul as the surface drifted farther away from him. Pulse like a jackhammer, Sonic held his breath and searched for _anything_ he could flail to so he could get back onto solid ground again. But, of course, everything was dark down here.

The hedgie's ears twitched when there was a muffled splash above him. Sonic fought to keep from gasping. Metal was diving after him, fingers outstretched and ready to grab. Sonic acted instinctively, doing everything he could to get away from the metallic predator yearning to tear him open.

It didn't matter how he moved his arms and legs. It seemed like the water was resisting him more now than ever – the few times he'd actually been in the stuff – and he wasn't getting any farther away. Metal was getting _closer._

There was nothing he could do. Well, he could try to learn how to swim, but he doubted that the few seconds he had to spare was enough time. No. No, there had to be _something-_

Another splash derailed his train of thought, and something slammed into him. Sonic had to close his eyes because the water suddenly rushing against them didn't exactly feel pleasant. The hero had been grabbed around his chest, and he didn't resist because Metal – or any robot for that matter – couldn't be this warm and furry.

Sonic inhaled deeply when he breached the surface. His breaths were quick as he glanced up. Grey had a deep frown on his muzzle, biting down on his lip hard. They were barely over the water, zooming away from the submerged Metal. Grey was squinting. The light seemed like it was killing him. He was severely pale too.

Sonic's brow furrowed in worry. Yeah, the psychic was like ninety percent bruises because of their fight, but he hadn't looked this bad before. The hero _definitely_ had missed something. "Hey, are you al-"

White ears folded downwards, and Grey's voice was quiet yet sharp. "Shut up. J-Just shut up. Everything _hurts_ and…" They curved around a thicker tower with stairs that were still intact. Grey's powers cut out right about them, and both hedgehogs landed hard. The psychic laid on his stomach, cradling his head. "I can't do it anymore." A bark of laughter then escaped his lips. "W-We're gonna die, aren't we?" Then he whined in severe discomfort.

Sonic managed to roll to minimize any damage, but with his body in this condition, the minimal was still enough to make him hiss. "We're not going to die," he panted out, getting back onto his feet, "All we have to do is-" Sonic couldn't finish his statement. Focusing on Grey, he figured out why the hedgehog had looked so horrible.

A good portion of his back was inflamed and blistering, an angry red replacing the white that was there. Blood was gushing out in multiple spots...and he was just worried about his _head?_

"Grey!" Sonic trotted over to the other – every step making him wince – and dropped to his knees. His hands hovered over the wound. He wouldn't _dare_ touch it. "You…You got hit by his laser!"

"Stop _yelling,_ " the psychic snapped, massaging his forehead. "And did I? I thought I felt something…"

" _Something?_ " Sonic wisely lowered his voice. "Can you not feel this?"

Grey lifted his head to give him a perplexed look. "All I feel is my brain trying to implode on itself. Is it bad?"

Sonic ran his fingers through his quills, sighing heavily. "That's an understatement… We need to-"

"It was foolish to think that you could hide from me." The blue speedster's blue quills bristled as he whirled around. Metal was there, floating in front of them. He'd been too distracted to track the bot's energy. "Especially when you do not think to keep your mouths shut."

Sonic got into already stance and planted a smirk on his face. He couldn't let Metal have the satisfaction of unnerving him. There was a low whimper from behind, and he positioned himself so that Metal would have to go through him to get to Grey.

"Maybe we wanted you here, yeah? Then-"

"Stop with the false bravado." Emerald orbs narrowed when Metal spoke. "Look at you. Look at him. You will not win here, despite any thoughts you have. This is the end, copy. I…" Metal trailed off, glancing down at his body.

Sonic tilted his head at the weird action before realizing what had happened. He couldn't feel the energy any more. Knux and his group had did it. _Just in time_. The smirk on his muzzle was genuine now. "You're right, Metal. This _is_ the end!"

The robot wasn't even looking at him anymore. He was gazing off in the distance. "There is something wrong with the Master Emerald. Without its energy, my success rate decreases drastically."

"Well yeah! I can actually _hit_ you again!" Adrenaline pumping through him, Sonic recklessly spin dashed the distracted Metal, smashing right into the bot's midsection. Uncurling, the speedster watched as the robot regained control of himself. The azure hedgie mentally celebrated when he saw the decently sized dent in the other's torso. However, his celebration was cut short when Metal turned and sped off.

Sonic sucked in a sharp breath when he landed on the stairs. Okay, he really had just hurt himself just now. His body was at its limit. However, that didn't keep him from reaching out in confusion at Metal's retreating back. "Wait! We're not done here! Ah…" Sonic rubbed his injured neck. Screaming at the top of his lungs was a big no-no. Got it.

There was a groan behind him. "How many times do I have to tell you? Do you want me to give _you_ a headache?" Sonic sent a grumbling Grey an apologetic smile. The psychic just groaned again before hiding his face with his arms. His voice was muffled. "I can't even enjoy our win…"

 _I wouldn't necessarily call that a win…_ Sonic glanced the way Metal went again before saying, "How about…How about you stay here while I go after him."

Grey peeked through his arms in order to glare at him. "Are you crazy? Look at yourself! You really think you'll be able to run on water or jump from pillar to pillar when you can barely take a step?" Sonic cringed, and the psychic scoffed. "Yeah, I noticed. There's no problem with staying here. Shadow and Red and the others will take care of Metal." Sonic frowned. That was part of the reason why he wanted to go. "Let's just wait here and _relax._ "

"Wait here?" Sonic echoed distastefully. It was clear that he wasn't the biggest fan of waiting.

"Yeah." Grey grunted. "We wait until we see someone that _won't_ want to gut us and call them over."

The speedster gestured to the psychic's injury. "But what about you? That burn you have is _terrible_ , bud."

"I've had worse, like this stupid migraine. Penumbra was worse too." Grey let out a single dry chuckle before shrugging and instantly regretting that decision. "Ooo yeah I feel it now, but as long as I don't move, I'm fine."

Sonic couldn't believe this guy. "But you're _bleeding_. Bad. I can see it; you can't!"

Grey fully lifted his head and had a glare that rivaled Shadow's. "Just sit down and hush, please." When Sonic hesitated, the psychic drummed his fingers along his arm. "I swear, if you make me use my powers on you while I have this headache, you _will_ regret it."

With flashbacks of this psychic first waking up in his home and with ones from when he had first met Silver popping up in his mind, Sonic went over and gingerly sat down by the white one. He leaned back against the pillar and hid how grateful he was to be off his feet. "Happy now?"

The dark look was gone, replaced with a content smile. "Very. And you are too."

Sonic couldn't help but snicker. The other was just as worried about his wellbeing. "You got me." The hero eyed the psychic. "But if you pass out on me, I'm going."

"Understandable." Grey snorted. "But until then, let's just wait for help."

They sat, and help eventually did show up. It nearly scared the hedgehog duo to death, but it was welcomed nonetheless.

Sonic smiled at the sight of Shadow and Rouge; it widened even further when the Ultimate Lifeform handed over a Chaos emerald. Sonic's muscles relaxed when he palmed the gem, noticing that it was fully powered. "So you got 'em, _and_ Master Emerald's shut down? Perfect!"

Grey laughed. It sounded weaker than before. "This couldn't get any better." Sonic gestured for Shadow to take care of the psychic first. Grey pleasantly sighed when darker one started on his back. "So how'd you two find us any way?"

"Well, you two don't exactly blend in being blue, white…and red." Rouge pursed her lips, glancing around before focusing on Sonic. "Who were you fighting anyway, hon? And where are they?"

"Metal." Sonic watched at the burn slowly but surely disappeared. "The scaredy cat bolted as soon as his energy cut off. He probably went back down into the base. Did either of you see him?"

Rouge hummed. "Nope." She grinned, and Sonic couldn't help but to think that it seemed a little strained. "But let's just say that he'll be down there for a long while."

"Hey Shadow, I know that you're busy on my back, but my head is _killing_ me." Silver sat up. "Could you just…?"

Sonic observed as Shadow repositioned his hands – that were _too_ bloody – over the psychic's temples. The striped anthro locked his jaw and paused longer than normal before his fingers began to glow.

The blue speedster sensed that something was off here. "What's goin' on Shads?" Emerald orbs drifted back to the bat when he received silence from his rival. "Rouge?"

Her gaze lingered on her teammate before she met Sonic's curious one. "Brace yourself hon." Sonic tensed up again. Why would she say that? What happened? Rouge let out a deep breath. "Rosy's deaf because of Bat. Shadow tried to heal her, but…"

Sonic's jaw dropped. "…What?" But Bat…Boar attacked him and…

"Tried?" Grey's wide eyes focused on Shadow. The psychic froze. "What do you mean by _tried?!_ Apparently you _didn't_ if she still can't hear!"

Rouge attempted to placate him. "Sugar-"

"I'm not talking to you!" Grey was focused on nothing but Shadow. " _You_ answer me, Shadow." The striped hedgie's attention was on his job. The psychic bared his teeth before ripping Shadow's hands away, gripping them tightly. Ruby orbs were wide as well. " _Why?_ Why c-can't she…" The psychic was losing steam.

Shadow stared at his distressed ally before muttering, "I can't heal what isn't there. Bat must've…I don't know."

Grey's fingers slipped from around Shadow's wrists, settling on his own knees and squeezing. He was fighting his tears. "They…They are all going to _pay._ "

Shadow nodded at him, placing his hands back on the other's head. "That's the plan."

Sonic swallowed thickly. He just couldn't imagine… "Where is she?"

"She's with Red, VC, and her personal little guard dog, heading the way Pinky and her group went," Rouge said good-naturedly, chuckling at Shadow. He threw her a pointed look. "Let's just say…TT acted a little more violently than Grey here," she explained to the oblivious hedgehogs.

Sonic blinked. Oh wow. But…he couldn't be that surprised. If it had been Tails…

The hero shook away that thought. They weren't completely out of the woods yet, and he didn't want to jinx anything.

"So, after I get healed…" he trailed off.

Shadow finished the statement. "…we gather all the emeralds and make that chameleon suffer for all that he's done."

Sonic nodded. _Couldn't have said it better myself._

* * *

Rogue frowned as the evil Omega blasted towards them. This situation was about to get ugly, he could tell. The bat looked at the giant avian at his side and made a decision. He'd feel _so_ bad if it got hurt. He already put its life in danger once. It had done a fine job acting as his temporary wings.

The bat reached up and patted Hawky on his head, wincing as he did so. _If I ever get shot in the shoulder again, I'm gonna flip._ The bird leaned into the touch, and he removed his hand after a moment. "You should go." The avian stared at him. He had _no_ idea if it could understand his words or not. "Thanks for your help, but you're free to go now!"

Hawky cawed before flapping his wings and flying off without a second thought.

Rogue blinked. "That was easier than I thought it would be." The bird flapped in the opposite direction of the incoming bot, and he turned to an observing Penumbra when the avian disappeared. Boom was glaring straight ahead, gaze never deviating from the approaching danger.

"Hey Nummy." The striped hedgehog tilted his head in response, and Rogue gestured to his shoulder and messed up wing. "Can you heal me up real quick man?"

Penumbra gave the evil Omega a fleeting glance before stepping over. "Okay…" he breathed out, still winded from the blast he had just produced. The striped hedgie placed one hand gently on the gash in the bat's shoulder and the other on the wing after Rogue had painfully stretched it out. He pulled from the emerald in his quills and went to work.

Boom tore his attention from the red and black robot, who seemed to be taking his time in flying over. What, were they not _worth_ going high speed for? The azure speedster inwardly scowled as he focused on Rogue. "While you two do that, I'm going to beat that bot's _ass_."

The blue Mobian shifted his weight, mentally planning a path to get to that damned murderer. The he could either skillfully bounce over by using the rope strung about between multiple stone towers, or use the towers themselves to jump between. Before he could decide, his arm was grabbed. He whirled his head around only to see a tight-lipped Rogue.

"C'mon dude, you're still on about that? You really think that we're going to just sit here and watch while you go out alone? That's-"

Boom yanked his arm out of the other's grip, snapping out, "I don't care about what you do, as long as you stay out of _my_ fucking fight. You saved me before, but I didn't _need_ your damn help." He turned back around before Rogue could respond, getting ready to take off. However, he was stopped _yet again_ when fingers grabbed him. They were tighter this time.

The hedgehog spun around, ready to chew the bat out and shove him out of his personal space, but those plans were cancelled when hardened emeralds locked with expressive rubies.

Penumbra, quick with the healing, frowned at him. Nummy let the speedster go as he opened his mouth, his sentence fragmented. His mind strain was visible as he spoke. "Mephiles friend…all. Not…you alone."

 _Mephiles was everyone's friend, not just yours._

Boom clenched his fist as he leaned closer to Penumbra, teeth bared. The striped hedgie slouched a bit when the blue one loomed over him, black ears flattened against his head, but he glared right back up at Boom.

The azure Mobian's voice was a hiss. " _I'm_ the one that dragged Mephiles to his death, so _I'm_ the one to settle the score. But I know that you-" Boom's heated stare snapped over to a solemn Rogue. "-and apparently _you_ can't effing understand that." He then pushed Penumbra back, causing the surprised anthro to stumble backwards. "So you stay the hell _here,_ and…" _keep out of danger,_ "…stay out of my damn way!"

Penumbra rapidly blinked before a deep rumble emitted from his throat. "No," he growled, shaking his head adamantly. "We help. No care if you mad." Nummy fearlessly got back into Boom's face. "I hate robot too."

 _Damnit…_ Boom mentally cursed. _Stop arguing with me!_ His frown deepened as he narrowed his eyes. "Don't make me _knock_ you _out_ so-"

"Whoa hey!" Rogue pried the two hedgehogs apart, hands on each of their chests. He was standing in front of them now. Penumbra was looking curiously at him, ceasing his growling, and Boom just looked highly annoyed. The bat didn't bother with Nummy, because he did nothing wrong. "Remember who the bad guys are, bro!" he told the speedster. "We're not tryin' to steal the kill from you man. If you want the final blow, then go for it." Rogue sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "Even though you're pain in the ass sometimes, we don't want you to end up like-"

The trio's eyes widened when an explosion went off, it sounding very loud and very _close._ The group turned as a whole and promptly dropped down to the ground just as a bulky body soared right over their heads. Their confusion was palpable when the red and black mech slammed against the cliff behind him, bouncing off with smoke rising from him.

The previous conversation being put on hold, three pairs of eyes swiveled to where the bot was _supposed_ to be only to see a second Omega floating in the air, one of his arms a large missile launcher.

And that one…did _not_ have the Master Emerald energy flowing through him.

"That one's on our side," Boom informed as he stood back up before peering back at the Omega getting back to his feet, red opticals shining through the thick smoke. _That_ one was his target. He was about to spin dash the robot – most likely earning a nasty bruise in the process – but instead he was lifted up into the air by Rogue.

Boom opened his mouth to complain as they flew to the good Omega's side, but Rogue spoke before he got a chance to. "We can't just attack him outright! We gotta catch him by surprise until he powers down." _Which is hopefully soon…_

"OR I CAN ATTACK HIM DIRECTLY UNTIL I DESTROY THE INFERIOR MODEL." Omega's other arm morphed into a missile launcher as well. Then there was a flash, and suddenly Penumbra appeared clinging to the robot's head. "ALTERNATE SHADOW, WHY ARE YOU UP THERE?" The striped hedgie was too focused on the evil bot to answer to Omega's confusion, his quills bristling as his claws scraped off some of the bulky mech's paint.

Boom sent the Team Dark member a harsh glare. "You destroy him, and I destroy _you._ "

Omega focused on him. "ARE WE NOT ATTEMPTING TO ACHIEVE THE SAME GOAL?"

"I don't need to explain myself to you," the speedster retorted crisply.

"Yeah, especially right now…" Rogue muttered, eying as the enemy mech activated his boosters and as machine gun arms pointed directly at them. The bat's hold on Boom subtly tightened. "Oh boy…here we go."

"I WILL NOT BE THE ONE WHO WILL BE DESTROYED HERE," the twin stated, red eyes glinting. "YOU ARE THE SUBSTANDARD PRODUCT, ALTERNATE ME. I WILL REIGN SUPREME."

Anything Omega said in response were drowned out by rapid gunfire. Omega and Rogue flew up and away in opposite directions, bullets whizzing by in between them. The double blasted off, aiming for the robot/hedgehog pair.

Penumbra saw Rogue and Boom turn around in the sky to watch before maroon irises drifted down to lock on the mech chasing him and Omega. A pair of machine guns were pointed their way, and Nummy knew that pain would come _very_ soon if he didn't do anything about them.

Using the emerald in his quills, the black Mobian teleported from one robot's head to another. This time however, he was messing with the evil mech's vision by covering his face with his body. Nummy snarled as he held on tight. Metallic fingers scratched and pulled at him, but he refused to budge even when blood was drawn.

"GET OFF ME SO I CAN PROPERLY DISPOSE OF YOU," the blinded enemy commanded.

"No," Penumbra opposed. The hedgehog then peered over his shoulder and found Omega. The good bot was aiming his own arms at the bulky mech he was on top of. Understanding that he had unintentionally – yet luckily – set this up, a smirk grew on his muzzle. He changed his answer. "Okay."

He Chaos Controlled right as Omega let loose. Nummy watched from the nice one's head as the other got blown back by a multitude of exploding missiles.

"USING YOUR OWN BODY AS A DISTRACTION," Omega said over the noise, "GREAT STRATEGY, ALTERNATE SHADOW."

Penumbra didn't know what some of those words meant, but he heard great. Great was better than good. He did better than a good job. He cracked a grin. "Thank you." However, that expression quickly slipped away when his ears picked up something strange. There was a faint beeping noise seemingly…right behind his head.

The hedgehog reached in his spines and felt something small and round, definitely not the rock he had put in there. Brow furrowed, Nummy pulled the unknown object out. His muscles tensed up once he recognized it. It was the same thing that blew them up earlier! A…grenade?

He would worry about the name later. Penumbra knew that this thing could cause pain real fast, so he chucked it away as far as he could. Either he was too slow, or that he didn't throw it hard enough, but when the grenade detonated, it was far too close. All Nummy felt was _heat_.

He was unconscious before he hit the water.

Boom's heart leapt into his throat when orange and red rapidly expanded, the colors swallowing up Penumbra and Omega with little effort.

"Holy hell!" Rogue shouted from above him.

The speedster couldn't manage to form words, his pulse thudding in his ears. He was searching for any kind of movement, any sign of _life_. Panicked emeralds zeroed in on a one-armed Omega emerging from the resulting smoke. However, a mechanical limb wasn't the only thing the bot was missing.

Rogue audibly swallowed. "Oh _Chaos…_ Wh-Where's-"

There was a large splash that couldn't have belonged to that arm.

Omega, who had also noticed that something wasn't right, glanced down until more flames licked his very charred and slightly melted metal hide. His evil twin was coming at him with a flamethrower, like he hadn't done enough damage yet.

When the two robots flew away – one weaving back and forth to avoid dangerously high temperatures – and when Penumbra had _yet_ to breach the surface of the water, Boom finally found his voice. "We need to go down there," he strained out.

"But…" Rogue peered down at Boom with a hesitant frown. "Didn't you say that you couldn't-"

"I. Don't. Give. Two. _Shits._ " The hedgie's tone was as cold as ice flowed through his veins. "He could be _dying_ down there. _GO!_ "

The bat dove down where he thought Penumbra had gone under at that commanding bark, his nerves causing his stomach to churn. "I can swim, but I'm not the strongest out there." He coughed when he inhaled a small amount of smoke. "Saving one person I can do, but two…"

"You don't have worry about me." Boom's jaw locked as they closed in on the murky liquid. _Swimming isn't hard. If kids can do it, then…_ He inhaled deeply when his feet dipped slightly into the water. _I won't get swept away. He won't get swept away._

"I hope you're right, dude."

The azure Mobian paused his breathing when Rogue let him go. The lukewarm liquid quickly rose up to his neck; he managed to keep his head above water by flailing his arms and legs in the same direction: down. The bat sunk down as well, his controlled tread contrasting Boom's random movements. Determined teal and emerald orbs locked, and they nodded at each other before going under.

The hedgehog held his breath as he submerged himself. His heart was racing, but he ignored the panic within him to focus on his task. Boom gave Rogue a last glance – he could _barely_ see the bat down here – before squinting into the turbid water. Penumbra had to be down here _somewhere._ The water couldn't be too deep, right? He forced himself to believe that.

Cheeks puffed out, Boom let his gaze roam all around, looking for any hints. Wanting to go a bit deeper, he switched up the general direction of his limbs, and his body did what he wanted. _Thank Chaos._ However, it didn't help much. It was so dark and every submerged rock seemed like a body to him and…and he needed air.

Bubbles escaped his mouth as he swam – more like methodically jerked – upwards. He sucked in a large breath when he broke the surface. After wiping leftover water off his face, Boom glanced around him, panting. Rogue was still under.

Ignoring the rapid-fire and the explosions and the continuous 'YOU ARE INFERIOR' coming from up above, Boom readied himself to take another dive. However, he paused when Rogue came up for air, them being farther apart than before.

"Found anything?" Boom raised his voice to an almost-shout even though he knew the answer already.

"No man…" Rogue barely got that out before the hedgehog went under again. The bat took a swift moment to regain his oxygen before doing the same. They _had_ to find Penumbra as fast as they could. They were running out of time. Nummy…couldn't be conscious. If he was, then he would've been on dry ground by now. The emerald he had – Rogue resisted the urge to gasp. _He has a Chaos emerald! It glows! I should be looking for that!_

Lungs burning from anxiety rather than lack of air, Rogue swam deeper, checking in all directions for any shine. There was one to his far right, but he knew that it wasn't the hedgehog he was looking for. Using his arms, legs, and wings to propel him, he swam down until a faint unnatural light caught his eye.

It was a handful of meters lower than him, drifting slightly. That was Penumbra; it _had_ to be. Having enough breath to bypass resurfacing, Rogue pushed himself towards his friend in need, keeping his relief in check. He had to get to Nummy first.

When he got close enough, teal orbs widened at the condition the other was in. Penumbra was face up and his eyes were closed. He looked _terrible_. There were burns all over his front and most of his fur had been singed off his face and chest. This…This was like their first fight when the evil robot, but way worse.

Rogue reached forward and wrapped his arm around the other's torso. He swam with all his might until he breached the surface once more, making sure that Penumbra's head was above water as well. The bat glanced around but didn't spot Boom. He must be still searching.

The winged Mobian locked onto a platform floating on the water and headed for it. Rogue dragged Penumbra onto the platform with difficulty, for it kept on bobbing up and down. When he eventually managed, Boom's head had popped out of the water.

On his knees, Rogue waved his hand to get the other's attention. "Blue! Sonic! Over here!" When the speedster turned his way, Rogue shifted his focus elsewhere. Swallowing thickly, he leaned over Nummy and put his ear to the hedgehog's chest. He let out a sigh of relief when he heard a heartbeat, but all of his muscles tensed when he realized that it was much… _much_ too slow.

Rogue sat up in panic before propping open Penumbra's mouth and lowering his ear again. All blood drained from the bat's face. He wasn't breathing.

 _Oh man oh man oh man oh SHIT MAN!_

The bat whipped his head around once Boom reached the platform. The pure _fear_ pumping through his veins caused his voice to crack. "He's…He's not breathing!"

The same fear possessing Rogue grabbed hold of Boom's heart and _squeezed._ He scrambled over to Penumbra's unoccupied side and completely froze up. His eyes were wide as he took in the stillness and the…and the severe burns like…like…

The image of Mephiles' corpse flashed for only a second in his mind. That was enough time to send him in a downward spiral.

His hands began shaking uncontrollably as he stared unseeingly at them, water dripping down his arms. His breaths were coming out shallow and ragged. _This… It's happening again… I-I told him to stay out of it! I tried this time to…but he – they didn't listen! Dammit…I…h-he…_

Boom was snapped out of his imploding mental state when a hand slapped him hard across the face. His head was wrenched to the side, and before he could react, his wrists were harshly grabbed. "Sonic, come back to me man!" Boom slowly faced forward – his cheek stinging – and met Rogue's frantic gaze. The bat tightened his grip until it was borderline painful. "Please stay with me because…because we _both_ can't be panicking. Someone has to have a clear head and – he's not gone yet! We have to save him and you just can't leave me alone here dude!"

 _He's not gone yet._

 _Yet._

Meaning…that Penumbra would die if they didn't help him. If _he_ didn't pull himself together.

"I'm here…" Boom's voice was barely over a whisper. He numbly nodded at the bat in front of him, getting his trembling back under control. "I'm here. I'm here." Rogue let go of him and nodded back. Boom lightly pushed the white Mobian out of the way as he leaned over Penumbra. He placed his hands one over the other on Nummy's chest and started pumping. Stormy green irises never left the striped hedgehog's face, looking for any sign of life. "Come on…" He gritted his teeth as he continued his rhythm. "Come on you stupid son of bitch… Come _on!_ "

Boom paused and laid his ear by the open mouth again. Nothing.

Rogue bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. "Dude…"

Boom scooted over some and pointed to the spot he used to be. "Start pressing _exactly_ like I was after I do this." Rogue didn't question it, positioning himself over Penumbra like Boom had been. The hedgehog dipped down and performed mouth-to-mouth, blowing hard and watching as the unconscious Mobian's pectorals manually rose and fell.

The speedster exhaled heavily into Nummy's throat a few more times before detaching. He waited. Nothing again. All he had to do was give Rogue a look and the bat began pumping.

"P-man, I know that I already apologized for what Silv and I did, but…" Rogue's gaze was glossy as he pressed. "But you didn't deserve it. None of it. You didn't deserve what that chameleon did to you either, and you definitely didn't deserve what happened to you in the future." He chuckled. It was forced. "That…That didn't even sound right…but anyway bro, we're gonna keep that from happening. Y-You aren't going to die now, so you're not going to die then either. You hear me?" There was no response, and he was biting his lip again. "Give me _something…!"_

"Stop," Boom said, and he plunged in the second Rogue leaned away. The azure anthro blow hard into Penumbra's mouth over and over again. _Please please please please please._ The word repeated like a personal mantra in his mind. _Please don't let more innocence die…_

As soon as Boom finished, coughs wracked Penumbra's whole frame. Boom and Rogue watched with rising hopes as Nummy turned to his side, somewhat curling into himself as water cleared from his airways.

"Penumbra!" Rogue cried out in relief.

Boom felt all of the tension melt away. He slumped, running a damp hand through his equally as wet quills. "Don't you _ever_ effing scare me like that again," he chastised, but his words were missing the heat that was supposed to accompany them.

The striped hedgie's eyes blinked open, and tears instantly spilled out. "Sorry…I…grenade…" He let out a pained whimper as he wheezed, hugging his knees to his chest with a wince. He focused on Boom. "Hurts…"

Boom knew that the other had to be in agony. The speedster still felt that blast from earlier, and Penumbra had taken one at _extremely_ close range. Close enough that it almost killed him.

 _You don't have anything to apologize for._ "You have a damn Chaos emerald. Use it," Boom ordered as he calmed down his racing pulse. Penumbra was safe – no – he was _alive._ No one was safe yet. Nummy eventually nodded, eyes sliding back closed as he reached into his quills. He hugged the gem close to his body before relaxing.

Rogue covered his heart, leaning back on his other hand. "Chaos…I swear that I was one second away from going into cardiac arrest bro."

"You're telling me…" Boom's gaze lingered on Penumbra – it was subtle, but the burns were healing themselves – before drifting up at the sky. There were two robots fighting up there, and it wasn't difficult to differentiate the two. One was a little scorched with energy flowing through him, and the other was on his last legs. Omega was dented, missing parts, and his opticals were duller than before.

Boom focused on the bot in better condition, and infinite amounts of rage and _hate_ emitted from his body. He wanted to do something – _anything_ – to that metal asshole, but what could they do besides push the robot around a little? As much as he despised it, they had to wait.

Omega wasn't going to last much longer, and dammit, neither was his patience.

Rogue caught his eye when he got to his feet, the platform under them swaying slightly. "Stay with Penumbra for a sec, Blue," the bat said, steely teals zeroing in onto the mech shooting at Omega. "Gotta help our little robot friend out. If we don't, then Shadow and Rouge might be a _little_ upset."

"The hell are you going to do?" Boom warily questioned, "I swear that if you die, I _will_ kill you." He was too mentally worn out to compose proper threats.

The bat grimly smiled at him, understanding. "I'll keep that in mind bro. I'm gonna use the ropes to tie 'im up until we can actually do some damage. It's gotta be soon, right?" When Boom eventually nodded, Rogue flapped his damp wings and took off.

The white Mobian made sure to not alert the enemy of his presence, not that would be hard. The robot was set on destroying every piece of Omega. Rogue aimed for two towers with rope strung between them. Keeping the fighting duo in his sights – and keeping out of theirs – the bat reached one of the stone pillars.

The rope was tied in a knot around a small metal loop lodged firmly into the rock. Not knowing how deep the loop went, Rogue settled for untying the rough cord. With steady fingers, he tugged and pulled as he poked his tongue out of his mouth. The knot was stubborn, but he managed to loosen it.

Grinning victoriously, he loosely looped the rope around his hand as he flew to the other pillar. There was a good amount of rope, more than enough to round up the evil machine. The cord was attached to this structure just like before, so he went to undo the knot.

He heard the gunshots before he heard the voice.

"ALTERNATE ROUGE!"

Rogue immediately hid behind the pillar, hissing under his breath when he realized that he was too slow. A bullet had made its home in his arm. Rogue bit the inside of his cheek and hit the back of his head on the tower to hold in his pained cry.

 _Boom is so gonna kill me…_ was his first thought as he checked out his wound. The projectile was barely sticking out of his upper arm. Without thinking about it, Rogue pinched the bullet with his opposite hand and yanked it out, blood instantly chasing after it.

He dropped the bullet, but he didn't have time to recover for the chameleon's Omega had just rounded the corner with flamethrowers pointed right at him. Before Rogue's world became ten times hotter, Omega appeared too and blasted the other bot with a multitude of missiles. The evil bulky robot was propelled far to the side, and Omega gave chase.

Thanking his lucky stars, Rogue ignored the pain blossoming in his bicep and grabbed the metal loop. He bypassed the knot and went for yanking the metal straight out. The bat planted his feet on the stone and pushed against it, straining to dislodge the loop. He did a backflip in the air when it finally dislodged, small pieces of rock tumbling to the water below.

 _Alright…Okay…_ Rogue gave his bleeding limb a fleeting look. _I got this._ After making the rope into a crude and thick lasso, he peered around the pillar to find the two bots duking it out with flying bullets and missiles. Zeroing in on the cleaner one, the bat flew high into the sky, avoiding wayward projectiles.

Now above them, he tightened his grip on the rope and dived straight down. Omega had seen and stopped in firing. The targeted robot didn't catch on until it was too late. The rope constricted his arms to his sides yet again; however, the enemy Omega must've learned because he suddenly took off in a random direction.

"Ahhh!" Rogue shouted out in surprise as he was unwillingly dragged through the air. Wind whipped against his face as his wings rendered useless. He couldn't keep up with a freakin' jetpack! Rogue was afraid for a second that he had bitten off more than he could chew, but then a metallic arm appeared beside him. Looking over, he saw that Omega was flying at his side, holding out the Chaos emerald he took out of his body.

"USE THIS TO PLUG ONE OF HIS JETS. IT WOULD SEVERELY LIMIT HIS MOBILITY."

Rogue blinked before grabbing the emerald with one hand, the other still tight around the rope. Omega reached for the cord and immediately turned around once he had it. Because Omega was flying in the opposite direction of his twin, the tied up robot slowed drastically down.

The bat was appalled at the fact that Omega wanted him to use the gem as a _cork_ – Shadow would probably disapprove of this – but he soon got over it. It wasn't stupid if it worked.

Rogue flew toward the oblivious robot, ducking down lower and avoiding the hot flames spouting out of the circular jets keeping him airborne. When he got close enough, he flipped the emerald so that the pointy end would enter first.

As he reared back his arm, he got spotted. The red and black mech glanced down at him. "WHAT YOU ARE DOING, WINGED ANNOYANCE?"

"Bringing you down!" Rogue answered easily as he wedged the jewel inside one of the pipes. It was big enough that it didn't come flying back out.

The robot suddenly spiraled out of the sky, uncontrollably freefalling. Rogue and Omega – who had released the rope – barely kept up with the mech until he crashed into a large slab of dry land leading to a cobblestone walkway. That Omega bounced and slid until he slowed to a stop right under a stone arch.

Not letting this chance slip away, Rogue grabbed hold of the discarded rope again and flew around the rock at the bottom of the arch. He knotted the cord and _hoped_ that this thing would hold no matter how much the robot pulled.

Rogue and Omega grounded themselves enough distance away from the captured mech. The bat covered his bullet wound and chuckled. "Don't even try it." The rope was taut as Omega's double futilely attempted to free himself only using his legs and feet. "It's over for you man!"

"IT IS NOT." Red opticals flashed at him. "I WILL ESCAPE AND I WILL DESTROY ALL OF YOU. YOU CANNOT HARM ME."

"YOU ARE WRONG," Omega countered, "YOUR END IS NEAR…IF ALL HAD GONE RIGHT."

Rogue groaned as he nudged the other. "C'mon dude, don't jinx it!"

The double looked between them until the stare lingered on the bat. "HIS SYSTEMS MUST BE MALFUNCTIONING. IT IS CLEAR THAT-"

Rogue scoffed, cringing at his blood covered glove. "Just wait and see." Teal orbs then swiveled over to the platform in the distance that Boom and Penumbra were supposed to be on only to find that they had disappeared. "What…?"

"He woke up and saw all of you over here." Rogue and Omega peered over their shoulders at the voice. Boom was standing there with a kneeling Penumbra. The striped hedgie had one eye squeezed closed, the other glaring at the evil robot. After a second, he sat down on the ground and crossed his legs, hunched over the Chaos emerald in his palms. His pants were labored.

Boom frowned at Nummy before stepping up between the bat and robot, his heated stare trained on the other Omega. "You actually did it, bat-face. That was-"

"-awesome?" Rogue smirked and held out a fist, testing the waters.

However, it waned a bit when Boom's frown deepened at the hole in the winged one's hanging arm. Rogue was about to drop his hand, but then the speedster rolled his eyes and silently bumped it.

"I ASSISTED AS WELL," Omega pointedly reminded them almost like he was offended.

"Hell yeah you did!" Rogue patted the robot on his intact shoulder. "You saved me, and you distracted Mr. Trigger finger over there. Without that…"

… _Penumbra would probably be dead,_ Boom mentally finished that sentence. "You're not half bad, for a robot," he reluctantly admitted.

"I AM CONTENT WITH THOSE STATEMENTS."

"DO NOT FORGET THAT I AM HERE," the other Omega uttered, and Boom's quills bristled. "YOU HAVE NOT WON, FOR-"

" _You_ shut the fuck up!" The azure hedgehog snarled. "You don't deserve to talk after all that you've _done!_ " _Nearly killing me, Penumbra, and actually killing Mephiles…_ Boom was about to lunge, but Rogue shuffled in his way.

"Whoa dude, we won't be able to do anything to him right now, remember?"

"I remember." Blazing green irises never left the enemy. "I don't care."

"Well just…" Rogue thought for a second. "Well just let me get some more rope before you do anything. Can't have him getting free, y'know?"

Boom crossed his arms and huffed. "Fine, Rogue. Hurry up." The bat happily clapped him on the back before taking to the sky.

The captured bulky mech struggled some more. "EVEN IF YOU MIRACULOUSLY DEFEAT ME, MY MASTER WILL-"

The speedster ground his teeth together and spat, "He can't do _anything_ if he's dead."

There was a beat of silence until: "YOU ARE FOOLISH TO THINK THAT YOU WIN THIS."

Boom just narrowed his eyes at the other, itching to tear him apart.

Rogue returned about a minute later. The evil Omega tried – and failed – to avoid the next layer of rope. The bat landed beside Boom and gestured at the bot. "Go to town!" And the hedgehog did.

The bat whistled appreciatively under his breath when Boom slammed into the bot like a runaway train. The mech couldn't do anything but become a punching bag, the speedster taking all of his anger out on him. Yeah, the mech didn't take any damage, but Boom was still blowing off all of that stored steam.

"Be glad that that's not you," he said to Omega.

"USUALLY, I WOULD BE CONFIDENT THAT I WOULD WITHSTAND ANY ATTACKS. HOWEVER…" He trailed off when Boom spin dashed the Team Dark member's double into the ground.

Rogue snickered at that before quietly observing the satisfying scene in front of him. One moment, the robot was on the ground, then he was hurled into the air, back down to the ground again… He watched on for a while – Boom looked _nowhere_ close to tired – until his name was called.

"Rogue."

Said Mobian spun around on his heel to raise a brow at Penumbra. He looked better than before, but he still had a long way. "Yeah?"

A small smile adorned his muzzle. "Good…job."

Rogue copied the expression. "Thanks man! I do what I can!"

Nummy held the Chaos emerald closer to his body, sighing at the warmth. "We go attack mean Espio now?"

The bat's lips marginally straightened out, shoulders not as relaxed as before. "We'll get to him after we finish with chrome dome over there, alright man?"

The striped hedgie seemed somewhat unhappy, but he nodded anyway. "Okay. We go aft-" Penumbra's lips snapped closed when the gem in hands glowed brighter, more energy entering his system.

Rogue just stared in awe. _The emeralds are back to normal? But if the Master Emerald was the one suppressing them, then does that mean that Plan Shut down worked?_ The bat glanced over at Boom, who was straddling Omega's twin with a sadistic grin on his face. Rogue laughed out loud.

 _Yeah, it definitely worked._

* * *

 **A bunch of ups and downs in this one, doncha think?**

 **King Needlemouse – yeah…those nicknames aren't needed X)**

 **Next chapter…fight or flight!**

 **A/N: I know that this has nothing to do with the fic, but I have to get it off my chest. Have you guys seen the E3 trailer for Sonic Forces yet? If you have, great, if not, go watch it so you know what I mean when I say this.**

 **Shadow…BOOIIII ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?**

 **My reactions:**

 **Metal Sonic - happy.**

 **Zavok – confused, but happy nonetheless.**

 **Chaos – ecstatic and freakin'** _ **stoked.**_

 **Infinite – Is that my boy Mephiles? No? Alright, but I still interested.**

 **Shadow – happy then confused then angry (because he's supposed to be an anti-HERO) then understanding (the plot of this game is going to blow my mind) and then happy again…with a hint of salt. There** _ **better**_ **be a good reason why he's a baddy again.**

 **Sigh…I cannot** _ **wait**_ **until this game comes out. Sonic Team, SEGA, I applaud you.**

 **That's the end of my…rant? Fangirling? Whatever it was, so I'll catch you guys later!**


	43. Chapter 43

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co. Them all SEGA's peeps.**

 **A/N- Longest chapter so far! Sorry for any typos you might come across.**

 **Chapter 43- Shooting star**

"Are you sure they went in this direction?"

Vector lifted his partially submerged maw out of the water. He glanced up at Knuckles gliding over him as he swam. "I mean, it's the direction I saw them leave in!" he shouted loud enough so the echidna could hear. "They have to be around here somewhere!"

Espio, who was being dragged along by the swift swimmer, paid attention to the destroyed towers and structures in the distance. Unlike the stone broken a long time ago, those pillars were missing vegetation that would accumulate over time. They had crumbled recently.

"They're nearby," he confirmed. As they got closer to the newly made ruins, the chameleon noticed scorch marks on some of the rock. It made sense. If Boom, Rogue, and Penumbra were fighting the evil Omega, then explosions had surely gone off.

However, Espio's mind drifted from those Mobians and focused on a particularly pink colored one. The fact that Rosy was permanently deaf was still sinking in. Well, maybe not permanently? She was going to the hospital after this was over, surely, but if the Chaos emerald couldn't help her…

Water swirled around him as he clenched his jaw. If only had he seen that attack coming…had faster reflexes…

Vector, seeing his friend blankly stare forward, knew exactly what was plaguing the chameleon's mind. Hell, it was plaguing his too. "It _wasn't_ our fault. There was NO way we could've known Bat would launch at her, even after sayin' that he'd let us go!"

"That's part of the problem." Espio's voice was low and laced with guilt. "We shouldn't have trusted him in the first place."

Vector opened his mouth to refute, but he couldn't find the words at first. Espio was right; they shouldn't have let their guards down. But… "It was either trust him, or fight him." The croc sighed. "If we fought Bat, then things could've ended up way _worse_!"

The ninja stared at him for a moment before looking away, an aura of melancholy around him. Vector knew to end the conversation there. Espio was just going to block out anything else he said, too lost in his own thoughts.

Oblivious to the conversation down below, Knuckles squinted in the distance as wing whipped across his face. There were a few figures on a long piece of land up ahead, and his amethyst orbs widened once he recognized them. "I see them!" Both reptiles gazed up at him. "See that cobblestone walkway?"

"Yeah!" Vector exclaimed when he laid eyes on the group. The croc then cleared his throat and shouted as loud as he could. "HEY OVER THERE!" He lifted his unoccupied arm out of the water and waved it. After a second, someone – they assumed it was Rogue – waved back too. He was saying something, but the incoming trio heard nothing but gibberish.

Vector then cringed when he realized that they had to enlighten these guys on what happened. That should go _smoothly_.

Only a handful of minutes separated the two groups. Vector and Espio eventually climbed out of the murky water and onto dry land, droplets rolling off their scales. Knuckles landed cleanly beside them, examining the ones who obviously just had a rough battle.

It looked like Penumbra had the worst time, large patches of fur seemingly burnt off him. There were remnants of major burns; the luminescent Chaos emerald in his possession taking its time in healing. Omega was missing an arm and was damaged in many places, but he could be fixed up in less than a day. Boom and Rogue were in the same condition, more or less. Both had lesser burns, charred fur, and bruising. However, the azure's knuckles were stained a dark red, and the cloth was worn down in that area.

With one glance to the side, Knuckles had a good guess to what happened. The evil Omega was lying motionless on the ground. His arms and legs had been forcefully ripped from his torso, his core had been slashed open with trashed wires reaching out, and his head – if it could be called that anymore – was nothing but flattened metal.

Knuckles and his accomplices had come to lend a helping hand, but they were a bit late. Which was great, because now they had to make conversation with the ones that…Knuckles hadn't been the _friendliest_ to. It was for good reason – Vector was in the same boat he was, at least in regarding Rogue – said bat having made terrible missteps, Boom had done the same as well with the personality of a lemon, and well, Penumbra just made the _worst_ first impression in the history of first impressions.

However, given this whole world sharing situation they were in, Knuckles knew that he couldn't be standoffish forever. Especially now that they had news to deliver…

"We came here to assist, but…" Espio tore his gaze from the scrapped machine, ending the brief bout of silence. "It looks like you don't need it."

Rogue focused on him, or rather, his working eye. The ninja knew because of how the bat's facial features softened. The smile wasn't quite as bright as it could've been. "Of course we don't! You guys shut down the Master Emerald! Which is awesome, by the way," Rogue risked smiling at Knuckles, who couldn't return it for many reasons, "because if you didn't, we would've been stuck."

"We had it under control." Boom grunted, his narrowed stare calculating.

The bat scoffed. "I never said we didn't, man. I'm just sayin' that you couldn't have done what you did if Knuckles hadn't powered it down."

As much as he would _like_ to take the credit for it, Knuckles shook his head. "Red shut it down, not me. Rouge and I were too busy destroying that damned bunny."

"You took down Rabbit? Yes!" He bounded over to the echidna and rose a hand to initiate a high five. "Another robot down! Another point for the heroes!" When Knuckles deadpanned at him, Rogue whispered, "C'mon man. If I can get _Boom_ to fist-bump me, I can get a five from you, right?"

Before the guardian stated that Boom hadn't tried to kill his friends, _twice,_ a question emitted from the sitting striped hedgehog. Perplexed maroon orbs focused on Knuckles, Vector, and Espio intermittently. "Why sad? All you?

"YES. YOU DO NOT SEEM SO EXCITED ABOUT OUR VICTORY," Omega added on, "WHICH IS NOT ORDINARY."

When the trio shared a look, not refuting the accusation, Rogue lowered his hand and took a step back. "What's wrong? Did somethin' happen?"

Vector was the one who sighed, deciding to take the lead here. "Yeah…" He scratched the back of his neck, noticing Boom tense up. The croc as glad for the water around; he had a place to hide in case things got violent. "You remember when Boar attacked Bat?" All nodded except Penumbra, who was simply listening. "Well, turns out that he wasn't completely out for the count."

Boom's quills bristled at that. Emerald orbs glared, but it wasn't hard to detect the worry swirling within those depts. "What _happened._ Who-"

"Rosy," Espio said breathily. Rogue's eyes widened in surprise while Boom's narrowed further. "Bat attacked her and caused her to…" He struggled to keep his voice steady. "Rosy's deaf, and Shadow can't heal her."

The bat's ears drooped, but a strained grin grew. "Y-You're…You're messin' with us, right?" He glanced at the croc and echidna, both of their stares turning empathetic. The grin was gone, and he looked sick. "Oh _Chaos_ Amy… _no_ …"

Boom was frozen, and Espio imagined someone lighting a fuse. Every part of the hedgehog was stiff. His steely eyes never left the chameleon. Espio couldn't break eye-contact. He deserved every bit that was going to happen.

"You were there." Boom's tone was terse, more of a sure statement than a question. He was calm, too calm. "You saw."

Espio barely managed a nod. "Yes, Vector and I-" Pain blossomed in his cheek as he was launched backwards. A nasty bruise was no doubt going to form.

Vector gasped in shock as his friend was propelled back into the water. He refocused on the blue speedster. Boom was slowly lowering his bloodied fist, turning towards the flabbergasted croc. "You saw." His expression was blank, but his hard greens were _enraged._ "You were there, and you didn't _stop_ that piece of _shit?_ "

"We couldn't!" Vector was quick to defend himself. "He was too fast and – ah!" The croc braced his body for the hit that was _surely_ about to come – he noticed the way Boom shifted his weight – but it didn't. Rogue and Penumbra had restrained the hedgehog's arms, the striped one having hid his emerald in his quills. Omega had gone to help Espio back onto land.

"Let me _go!_ " Boom snarled, fighting his comrades. Vector couldn't help to compare him to a predator being refused his prey.

"Ch-Chill bro!" Rogue was barely put together himself. "They weren't the ones who-" The bat's sentence was cut off abruptly when the speedster was ripped out of his grip. Knuckles had punched Boom right in the nose with all he had without any remorse. In fact, it felt good. It was apt revenge for Espio and for when that hedgehog had kicked him in the head.

Boom hit the ground hard before getting into a crouching position, disregarding the blood gushing from his nose. He sped forward, and Knuckles got into a ready stance. He had to put his hedgehog in his place. And he was fully planning to until Penumbra got in the middle of them at the last second.

Hands were on the two riled ones' chests. "Stop," Penumbra ordered, whipping his head back and forth to address the duo who were openly glaring at each other. "Friends." Knuckles inwardly scoffed at that. They were allies – barely that – and nothing more. The echidna chose to be the bigger man though, leaning back and crossing his arms.

Nummy blinked in relief at him before facing Boom. He rose a hand to fix the blue one's nose, but Boom swatted it away. Penumbra frowned in slight frustration before regarding Knuckles once more. "Shadow no heal Amy? What-" He subtly shook his head, mending his question. "Why?"

Omega had deposited a dripping Espio with a horrid growing bruise on his cheek. The chameleon glanced at the agitated speedster wiping the blood under his nose before answering Penumbra's inquiry. "Shadow said that he couldn't heal what wasn't there. So she's…"

Boom bared his teeth before sprinting over to the torn apart robot. He reached into one of his jet pipes and yanked out a glowing Chaos emerald. He then shoved it into Nummy's hands. "Take us to Shadow. He has emeralds, right?" He barked in Espio's direction, and he nodded. Boom went back to commanding Nummy. "Teleport us to the nearest Chaos emerald you feel."

Seeing Penumbra focus on the gem, Vector held out a hand to stop him, for Rosy wasn't with Shadow at the moment, but it was too late. They all blinked out of existence.

* * *

Amy steeled her nerves and kept her fingers steady as she gripped one of her trustworthy hammers. She had to be strong. She couldn't back down from this intimating Silver replica who had dangerous rocks of many sizes circling around him along with floating streams of water that could whip and/or drown them at any moment.

Amy took it back. She _could_ back down, but she refused. She promised Sonic that she would fight hard, and plus… The pinkette casted a glance over her shoulder at the plane-less kit and at the drained psychic. She and Blaze were basically the only attackers their small group had left, and she couldn't leave this all up to the feline. She had to pull her weight too.

The hedgehog took a deep breath before locking gazes with Blaze. They nodded at each other. There was no holding back. They had to give it their all until Amy could successfully knock the robot's head off.

Adrenaline pumping, Amy sprinted without any further thought. Chunks of rock were instantly hurled in her direction. Anticipating this, the pinkette grinned before striking the ground with her trusty weapon, using it to launch herself in the air. She wasn't as close to Psy as she wanted to be, but it wasn't a problem. Because of her time with Sonic, going on adventures and such, she had to learn to think on her toes.

Amy landed on a flying piece of stone before hopping to another and another, closing the distance between her and the psychic bot. It was hard work keeping her balance, but she managed while destroying the rocks aimed at her delicate face.

When she believed that she was close enough to get in a hard hit, Amy put more power in her jump, sending herself over Psy's head. She rose her hammer, more than ready to strike, but then a steam of water shot forward like a hungry snake. The pinkette swatted the liquid away, and some of it harmlessly splashed on her face. Nothing would stop her from taking this robot down!

Amy then blinked in surprise when she was suddenly dangling. Her hammer was frozen midair with an aura of cyan surrounding it. _Well, maybe that will…_

"Your weapon is nothing but a toy," Psy said as he glanced up at her, opticals glowing, "You can't possibly defeat me with that."

Amy puffed out her cheeks, insulted. "My precious piko is _not_ a toy!" She released her hammer, materialized another, and swung with everything she had at the unexpecting robot. It was a satisfying hit, sending Psy careening at a downward diagonal. "Does it _feel_ like a toy to you?!"

Her victorious smile melted when she quickly noticed that she was freefalling now, and there was no way to land without hurting something. She gasped when she saw Blaze fly straight for the disoriented mech, the feline's palms acting as thrusters.

Blaze let out a war cry before flames encompassed her as she spun like an out of control tornado. She hit Psy full force, heels safely sliding on the ground afterwards. Amy felt a pang of jealousy. She wished that _her_ feet were on the ground right about now.

"Blaze!" She yelled out as the stone walkway rushed up way too fast to meet her.

The purple Mobian whirled around at the sound of her name. Ears twitching at the noise of Psy crashing behind her, Blaze ran over to the falling hedgehog. She opened her arms and caught the hedgie with a small huff.

Blaze gently stood her up as Amy threw her a thankful smile. The feline's lips twitched as well. She was impressed with the pinkette's maneuvering and quick thinking up there. "Good hit," Blaze complemented, "Although it's going to take many more of those to put a dent in him."

Amy leaned against her hammer, its head acting as a steady base. "Back at you!" She then sighed. "But yeah, this guy's tough, but we're tougher! If only we didn't have to wait for Knuckles and Shadow to – Oh my gosh!" Amy thrusted a finger out, pointing to something out of the cat's sight. "Blaze!"

Said Mobian followed the other's digit and gritted her teeth at the sight of a formidable glowing wave about to crash down on them. "Get behind me!" Blaze shouted, and Amy wasted no time in doing so. After heavily inhaling and fanning the raging fire within her, the feline faced her palms forward. She forcefully exhaled, her hands becoming biotic flamethrowers as she did so.

The hot flames and cool water collided together with an angry hiss. Only a couple of drops passed through the wall of white steam, landing on Blaze's face. She ignored it, pushing her flames until most of the water was evaporated.

"Behind us!"

"Hah!" Blaze produced a ribbon of flames again when another wave was hurled from behind, more steam impeding their vision. The opaque vapor was surrounding them now, and Blaze thought with a sinking heart that Psy had done this on _purpose._

They were sitting ducks. There was _no_ way to pinpoint the location of the bot in this. Yes, Psy couldn't find them either, but he was more of a threat to them than vice versa. They couldn't bolt for it because they might accidently run right into him.

"Stay close Amy," Blaze whispered to her friend. They were back-to-back now to cover a wide range. "Keep your eyes peeled."

"I definitely will…"

The feline's piercing golden eyes snapped back and forth, trying and failing to peer into the steam. When she noticed the incoming attack, it was almost too late. It was an arc of crackling cyan energy aimed right at their necks.

Blaze gripped Amy's shoulder and shouted, "Duck!" Though it wasn't completely necessary, for she had yanked the pinkette downward before she could process the command. The psychic slice soared over their heads, but before they could relax, another was speeding their way. "Jump!" Amy didn't need guidance with that one, for she had seen it coming as well.

"W-Where is he?!" Amy hastily asked as they landed. Blaze wished that she had an answer. For some reason, the vapor was lingering around and not helping their situation at all.

"Just keep dodging until the steam goes away!" It was the only thing Blaze could suggest. The attacks were consistent, coming at them from all angles. The slices were a mix up of horizontal, diagonal, and vertical. The girls had been lucky enough to dodge all of them, but their clothes were getting torn. There were many close calls.

Blaze would use her powers to attempt to cancel out Psy's own, but it was so _humid_ right now and doing so would take up too much energy. Energy she needed to keep from being hit.

"Blaze…" Amy was breathing heavy. "Something's wrong here."

"I've noticed." The cat adjusted her dress only to have the sleeve rip right off. It had already been damaged because of the fight in the future against this same robot, so now the last threads had been too weak to keep together. Her gaze flickered over her shoulder at Amy. "The steam should've risen a long time ago. Something is – _gah!_ "

She shouldn't have taken her eyes off of her surroundings. If she hadn't, then she wouldn't be flying through the air, bouncing off of something, and hitting the stone walkway hard. Disregarding Amy shouting her name for a second time, Blaze checked herself and winced at what she saw.

There was a wide gash in her midsection, blood leaking down her stomach. She hissed in pain when she only grazed it with a finger. _If only I hadn't been so careless-!_

"Blaze? Blaze! Where are you?!"

The feline opened her mouth to respond, but she held her tongue. Psy didn't know exactly where she was anymore. She needed to remain hidden for a moment. She recalled _impacting_ a wall that shouldn't be there. They had been fighting in an open space, so what…?

Blaze staggered back onto her feet, sparks of pain emitting from her injury. She disregarded them to the best of her ability, her curiosity yearning to be sated. The Mobian shuffled in the direction of the mystery object and almost ran into it. She would have if she hadn't been so familiar with Silver's powers.

There was a cyan tinted wall an inch away from her nose. Blaze splayed her fingers out against it. The barrier was transparent yet solid. She could see the waterfall on the other side of the walkway – the steam not reaching out there – but she couldn't take another step closer.

They were in a dome of energy. Psy had _trapped_ them in here.

" _Ahhh!"_

Blaze sucked in a breath when Amy's distressed scream reached her ears. She sprinted in the direction of the pinkette without a second thought. "Amy!" she yelled, every step producing slivers of agony deep within her. "Amy! Where-" Blaze cut herself off when the outline of her friend caught her attention. She ran up to the hedgehog's crouching form. Amy was holding her leg with her eyes squeezed shut and bottom lip caught between her teeth. She had gotten struck as well.

Chaos…they needed to get out of here. "Silver! Silver, we-"

"He won't be able to help you." A robotic voice interrupted Blaze's call. Her eyes snapped to where it had emitted from and saw two glowing opticals staring back at her. In her peripheral, Amy shakily stood back up, shifting her weight to her uninjured leg. "His powers are no match for mine." Psy approached, fading more into view, and his fingertips had a blue aura encompassing them. "So you're trapped in here until I say so."

The mech slashed, and the girls had no choice but to dance.

Outside of the luminous dome, the boys were at a near panic. Like the girls, they didn't know what was happening until it was too late. The curved wall had gone up in less than a second, capturing the swirling steam and preventing them from seeing what was going on inside. They heard Amy's and Blaze's voices, but they lacked the tone of someone who was _winning_ a fight.

Tails and Silver shared a severely concerned look before sprinting over to the barrier. The white hedgehog rammed the shield with his shoulder only to stumble back as pain throbbed there. He rubbed his abused skin, hating that he was reduced to relying on his physical strength…which was not as fine-tuned as his mental abilities.

The kit – with his namesakes spinning to keep him airborne – kicked the barrier, doing nothing but bruising his toes. Tails wracked his brain as he flew around the compact dome, Silver jogging to keep up with him. He was searching for _any_ weak spots, any opening. There were none.

Tails chewed the inside of his cheek when he grounded himself beside the psychic. "There's…There's no way we can get inside!"

"No…" Silver shook his head, pressing a palm against the barrier. A deep frown marred his muzzle. "There _is_ a way we can get in, but…" As soon as the hedgehog concentrated, it felt like a nail was getting hammered into his brain. Silver groaned and held his head. "But I can't…"

Tails casted the hedgehog an anxious glance. Under normal circumstances, Silver could at least _attempt_ to destroy this psychic wall, but this was nowhere near normal. The white Mobian was seriously hurt, not that one could tell from the outside. If only…

A lightbulb went off in the fox's head as he peered down at the two dull Chaos emeralds in his grasp. Maybe Silver didn't have the natural affinity with the emeralds like Shadow or Penumbra did, but he sure had enough to draw out their power.

Tails thrusted the gems in the hedgie's direction, befuddled golden orbs blinking at him. "See if you can heal with these, Silver! I know that they're half power, and you've probably never done it before, but it doesn't hurt to experiment!" Especially sense their friends' lives were on the line.

Silver hesitated at first – it was true, he'd only used the emeralds were he absolutely needed to. Never as healing items – but then Blaze's yell impinged their ears. The psychic's heart leapt into his throat. "Blaze…" Her name cracked on his tongue. He then took the emeralds from the mortified kit's hands. He had to do this. It had to work! Because if it didn't…

Silver shook those thoughts away and hugged the jewels close to his body, shutting his eyes in order to successfully focus on what he was doing. It would help if the gems were at full power, but he couldn't let that discourage him.

The hedgehog felt the muted energy pulsating within the gems, just out of his reach. He knew exactly how to absorb the power to induce Chaos Control, but that wouldn't help him without his powers. Silver couldn't feel Psy inside; he must've masked his energy output. The white hedgehog had to prevent the Chaos emerald's energy from pumping into him in a massive burst. He needed its gentle warmth, and it was going to take a lot of effort to reach the healing energy.

All of his focus shattered when there was another scream. It was pitched higher than Blaze's.

"Amy!" Silver peeked one eye open to see Tails pounding his fists on the strong psychic barrier. The kit then focused in frenzied sapphires on the hedgehog. "Silver…!"

"I know! I know!" He shut his eye again, muscles tensed. "I just…I have to focus!" _Come on, come on!_ Silver pleaded frantically, holding the emeralds tighter. The psychic steadied his breathing as he struggled to make the right connection. Just when wispy tendrils of warmth entered his system, reaching for his exhausted mind, a third scream almost made him drop the gems.

" _Silver!"_

Said hedgie's eyes flew open, and his brain could hardly process the visual of Tails getting _yanked_ through the wall by a robotic arm. Silver dropped an emerald and reached out for the kit's fingers, but it was too late. His hand met the reinforced barrier.

"Tails!" Silver cried out in horror as Psy slammed the kid on the ground, the fox being a _foot_ away and him not able to do _anything_ about it-! The psychic mech stomped on the base of Tails' namesakes, and white ears plastered themselves against their owner's head at the sound of cracked bones and an agonized wail. Silver punched the shield with his free hand. "St-Stop, you monster! He's just a kid!"

"Master said to kill anyone I find," Psy said blandly like he was talking about the weather, _not_ about planned homicide. The robot – still gripping the struggling fox's wrist – flung him into the steam, disappearing from sight. "I'm just following orders."

"Don't-!" Silver's plea died on his lips when the white replica faded as well. The psychic's knees threatened to buckle when distressed voices rose a moment later. "No…"

Knowing that the lives of his friends were dependent on _him_ , Silver snatched the discarded emerald off the ground and held tight. Calming himself, the chaotic energy reached out swifter then before, him learning how to begin the process. The warmth crawled up from his core into his brain, and suddenly Silver felt lightheaded. He marginally relaxed as his mind was swamped with the helpful energy, revitalizing the pink organ.

The psychic took slower and deeper breaths as the dull ache slowly but surely disappeared. Silver had no idea if he was at one hundred percent yet, but too much time had ticked by already. He had to make a move.

Silver jumped into the air and nearly smiled in relief when his mind didn't protest him floating. He was back in action. After nodding to himself, he secured one emerald under his quills and tucked the other underneath his arm. First, he needed to get rid of the obscuring steam.

The hedgehog flew up and over the dome, finding the highest point of the barrier. Silver landed on top of the solid enclosure and kneeled down. He splayed one hand against the translucent surface. He had to cancel out Psy's powers, somehow. Fingers glowing, Silver gritted his teeth and concentrated.

Surprisingly, the barrier was easy to take out. Psy must've been busy with…something else. Pushing potentially dark thoughts away, Silver floated again as a hole formed in the surface, quickly spreading wider. It looked like a slowed down video of a balloon popping.

The temperature of his surroundings then increased as the steam escaped, rising past him and into the sky. Silver didn't focus on the vapor for too long; he glanced downwards only to find multiple pairs of eyes staring up at him. Most were relieved, but one was…well, he couldn't exactly read the robot's expression.

Silver didn't care though. He had to get to Psy before he pulled _another_ trick out of his sleeve. The hedgehog swooped down, dodging dangerously arcing energy, before grabbing the mech with his mind, preventing all movement. It was too bad that the robot had let the energy flow again. Though, with the Chaos emeralds this close to him, Silver would be able to do this all day.

"Don't even try to struggle," Silver growled, his gaze narrowing into a glare, "because it's no use. You can't escape me." Psy didn't answer him – didn't attempt to wiggle free either – and Silver was angry, sure, but it didn't keep him from being somewhat unnerved by that blank stare.

The psychic peered over his shoulder to regard his friends. "Are you all okay?" He knew the answer already. Going off what he was seeing right now, no, they were _not_ okay.

All of them were more than a little rough for wear. Amy had fallen to her knees, tears pricking the corners of her eyes. They could be of happiness or from pain…or both. There was a nasty gash on her right leg and smaller ones littering her body. Blood was matting her pink fur. Blaze in the same condition, but the concerning slash was on her midsection rather than her leg. Blood had saturated her dress. The feline was slightly bending over, her features twisted up in pain as she gingerly covered her wound with her arm.

Tails wasn't as red and tired as the girls, but Silver could tell that his two broken appendages were giving him a hard time. His cheeks were moist, and his fingers were subtly trembling.

Silver had a feeling that if he had been a bit later, Psy would've…

He didn't have it in him to finish that thought.

Blaze was the first to speak, trying to control her rapid breathing. "No," she said honestly, "B-But we could be worse."

"I'm glad you managed to stop him, Silver, because…" Amy let out a whimper as she gazed at her leg. "…it was getting harder and harder to dodge him…"

"We can't let our guards down though." Tails took a step and hissed under his breath as sparks of pain bolted up his spine. His namesakes were dragging limp on the ground behind him. "We can't until we can actually take him down…"

"Right." Silver could only hope that the Master Emerald would shut down soon…especially _now_ that more streams of water and chucks of rock separated from the falls, floating around the group in a wide circle. Blaze and Tails had stiffened, and Amy brought her hammer back out. Psy's opticals were glowing bright; Silver was equal parts scared and exasperated. "Would you _stop?_ There's no point in-"

"I won't." Psy interjected, "You won't be able to defeat me. If you had the ability, then you would've done it already." _That's where you're wrong,_ Silver mentally argued. The mech continued, "Just accept your fate. Master wants you dead, so that shall be."

"That's what you think?" Silver blinked when Blaze bolted past him, hopping over stones and ducking under the liquid hurled at her. Her detached sleeve was dangling from her fist. She managed to get behind Psy and tie the cloth around the robot's eyes. The floating earth and water promptly crashed to the stone walkway. Blaze's tone was a dangerous hiss. " _You_ won't be able to defeat _us_. If you had the ability, then _you_ would've done it already, correct?"

Psy produced a hum. "You've rendered my power useless." He ignored Blaze's retort completely. "What will you do now? You can't physically harm me."

"We bide our time." Blaze breathed out before trudging over and carefully settling down to the left of Silver.

"Until what, exactly?"

"Like we'd tell you!" Amy hobbled over to the white hedgehog's other side and sat down, her weapon vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Psy didn't reply. Tails shuffled up beside the pinkette and quietly groaned as he laid down on his stomach to not jar his broken bones. "Did you seriously have to destroy my plane?" The question almost came out as a whine.

"Yes." Silver could tell that Psy attempted to nod. "I thought that it would be easier to kill you if I got rid of your aerial support."

The white hedgehog couldn't _wait_ to turn this guy into scraps. One less dangerous robot in the world.

They didn't have to wait too long. As soon as Silver noticed that the energy within the bot had unexpectedly stopped swirling, he ripped Psy's arms from his body. He was about to crush the mech's head like an empty tin can, but a large glowing crack developed in the stone where Psy was standing. The crack then shot out towards the heroes, a deep rumble filling the air.

"What-" Silver didn't get to fully voice his confusion before a fissure formed right under them, the walkway crumbling and splitting apart in less than a second. Amy, Tails, and Blaze yelled in horror as they fell with the collapsing rock into the rough waters below. The psychic's heart thudded painfully against his chest as he dove after them, leaving the enemy behind.

"I'm pausing this fight, for I need repairs." He heard as he zoomed downwards, avoiding jagged rocks and inhaling the irritating dust. "Next time, don't underestimate your opponent." Silver completely ignored the robot's _helpful_ advice as he floated over the rushing river, now under the crumbling platform.

He hissed when a small rock bounced off his head, panicking gold orbs scanning the rapids for any sign of life. "Tails? Amy? Blaze!" There was no answer but the roar of the raging rapids. Silver made sure the now glowing Chaos emerald held in his arm was secure before flying close to the surface of the large river, calling those three names again.

And again.

And agai-

"Silver!"

They hedgie's ears perked up at his name. It was faint, coming from way up ahead – the water's current was stronger than he thought it was – but he still recognized it. "Blaze!" Silver increased his speed, wanting to catch up to her before-

Silver peered over his shoulder when _very_ large sections of the walkway splashed into the river. The whole thing was collapsing.

Gulping audibly, he pushed himself faster, weaving between falling debris. "Help us!" That was Amy. He was getting closer, he could tell… There! The trio were up ahead, getting slapped on all sides by relentless waves. They were all staying together by holding onto a hammer the pinkette had materialized. "We can't-" They had went under for a moment before breaching the surface again. "-control ourselves!"

"I'm here!" Silver shouted, aiming for them. Three pairs of eyes found his flying form, and Tails began frantically waving. The psychic shot forward – nearly ramming head first into stone – and grabbed them with his powers. Not stopping to talk, Silver instantly flew up and around the side of the broken walkway, out of danger.

The hedgehog then searched for a place nearby to land. His friends were still hurt and he had to heal them, fast.

* * *

"There they go!"

Red, who was staring at the ceiling of the passenger jet they were in – thinking about nothing and everything at the same time – lowered his gaze at the sound of TT's voice coming from up front. The echidna observed the kit bringing the aircraft in for a landing for a moment before glancing out of the window to his right.

They were entering some kind of valley with waterfalls on either side. There was a large stone walkway with a gaping hole in the middle of it, and true to TT's words, there were outlines of Mobians down below.

Muted amethysts then drifted over to his pink-furred neighbor. Rosy was positioned between him and VC, said croc peering out the glass in the front. The female's head was ducked down, and she was absently fiddling with the cuffs of her damp gloves. She'd been crying ever since the news had been dropped. She had stopped recently though – probably a minute ago – no sounds but sniffs escaping her.

 _Poor…poor girl…_

She hadn't heard the fox's words – _will not ever hear them again_ – so Red nudged her with his elbow. Stormy eyes locked with his. "What?" she asked, and her jade orbs welled up again that the harsh reminder that her world was changed forever. Rosy wiped her face before tears fell, still staring at the sympathetic echidna.

Red was careful to make his statement clear. "Found them."

"Found them?" Rosy glanced questioningly up from his lips, sounding unsure.

The red Mobian nodded before bobbing his head at the window. He sat back in his seat as a silent invitation to look out of the glass. Rosy understood. She leaned partially over him to check out their surroundings, and Red simply peered over her head.

"What in the world caused that hole…?" Rosy muttered and glanced back at him. Red shrugged. He was just now seeing this like she was.

She focused back forward as VC uttered, "My bet is on Psy. Wherever that robot is…"

"Hopefully his parts are submerged and scattered so he can't be a bother." Red quietly sighed.

"I h-hope so too," TT commented as he piloted. "Especially because…" Dull sapphires focused back on Rosy, who was still gazing out of the window, oblivious to this conversation. The fox swallowed hard as he refocused at the task at hand.

Red and VC shared a knowing look and internally agreed with the kit. They had to keep Rosy safe no matter the situation. The croc then turned his attention to the whizzing landscape and the incoming walkway. "But hey kid, be careful where you land. That doesn't look the sturdiest."

"Y-Yeah, I'll try," TT responded, "The other me and the rest put a lot of distance between themselves and the hole. I sh-should be safe if I-"

"Land s-safely, Tails." Rosy unintentionally interjected, settling herself fully back in her seat. Red watched solemnly as she sniffed, blinking away wetness. It was going to be tough to get used to this, for her and everyone else. "It looks kinda dangerous down there…"

TT got over his surprise quickly. He locked gazes with her and meekly smiled with a nod; the sadness he tried to hide was blatant. Everyone could see through his mask. He turned around before Rosy broke down again.

Red wrapped an arm around her and allowed the pinkette to cry against him, wanting to be as comforting as possible. It wasn't exactly his forte, but he had to make an effort. VC gently squeezed her shoulder and whispered, "She's…They're just kids man… This is so messed up…"

The echidna didn't care that tears were soaking into his fur. "It's going to end soon. That's all that matters."

The landing was smooth, and the stone held.

Rosy had regathered herself as TT parked the aircraft, the door propping open. Red was the one to stand, going over to the opening and popping his head out, squinting against the evening sun. The group they had been searching for were sitting clumped together – well, laying in Tails' case. They weren't in the best condition. Amy and Blaze were cut up bad, and the fox's namesakes didn't look the best. Silver just had a couple bruises.

"I'll…break it to them," he lowly told the ones still in the aircraft.

"Hey Red!" Tails propped himself up on his elbows with a wince, attempting a smile. "I'm so glad that the shut down plan worked! Without it…"

"We'd still be fighting him!" Amy finished his statement, moving her injured leg a bit and whimpering. "Uh…do you have Shadow with you? Or Nummy? Silver's trying his best to heal us, but-"

"It's harder than it looks!" Silver defended himself. He had a Chaos emerald in his lap and a hand on Blaze's worst gash. His brow was furrowed in concentration, but nothing seemed to be happening. "It's totally different trying to heal someone else." He sighed in exasperation. "How do they make it look so easy?"

Red shook his head, using the steps to get level with them. _Be lucky that your injuries can be healed._ "They're not with us. It's just me, Vec – VC, TT, and Rosy."

Blaze heavily exhaled, pushing Silver's hand away. "Stop before you hurt yourself, Silver."

"But Blaze-"

"We'll live. We aren't _that_ hurt." The feline turned her attention to the jet behind Red, staggering up to her feet. "We'll be fine once we meet back up with them."

"…Right," Silver hesitantly conceded. Tails tenderly got to his feet as well, careful not to move his broken appendages. Amy received help from Silver's powers to stand up. The psychic nodded at Red. "Let's hurry and go."

"Wait a minute." Chaos…Red hated to be the one to bear bad news but it had to be done. "There's something I have to tell you."

"What is it?" Amy cocked her head. The echidna inwardly frowned. Seeing her and knowing the condition of Rosy…this whole situation was truly terrible. The pinkette gasped, worry flashing across her face. "Did someone get hurt?"

Red didn't answer right away. He might as well had said yes. Silver and Blaze tensed, Amy sucked in a breath, and Tails took a small step forward. "What happened?"

"Rosy's deaf." Nothing but the rumble of the waterfalls filled the air for a moment. Red glanced at a shocked Amy before his purple orbs found the jet again. "Shadow tried, but he couldn't..."

"D-Deaf?" Tails searched his expression for something that wasn't there. Yellow ears drooped somewhat. "You're…not joking…"

"No…" Amy shot forward, threating to collapse when she put weight on her cut leg, and passed Red, aiming for the aircraft. "No! No!" Red let her go and Tails also when the kit ran after her.

Silver and Blaze approached him, the latter's arm wrapped around her stomach. "How…How did it happen?" The psychic questioned, voice no louder than a whisper.

"And why couldn't Shadow help her?" Blaze added just as quietly.

"I wasn't there…" Red loosely crossed his arms. "…but I was told that Bat – yeah, he came out of nowhere – did something to her ears. And well, Shadow says that he can't heal what isn't there." He wanted to keep his confused anger under wraps, but some escaped in his tone. He knew that it was misplaced, but still… Before the duo could comment on it, Red made his way back to the plane. "Let's get going before you pass out, Blaze."

Boarding again, Red noticed that Amy had taken his spot beside Rosy. As Silver and Blaze entered, the echidna settled for a seat on the other side of the plane, by the aisle. The psychic and pyro sat by him, watching empathetically as the pinkettes clung to each other. VC was doing his best to comfort and to stay dry.

Tails was standing by his twin, mouth opening and closing like he couldn't find the right words. "TT…" He focused on his stressed and emotionally exhausted double. "I'm so sor-"

"You don't have to apologize," TT murmured, messing with some controls, "You didn't do anything..."

"But…Alright. At least let me pilot now, so you can-"

"No." Tails blinked at the other's abrupt answer. TT's grip tightened on the handles. "I-I don't want to sit back and have someone else take the reins, especially if I can _do_ something." He saw how limp Tails' furry appendages were. "And p-plus, you need to rest up…"

Tails opened his mouth to say something, but instead he shallowly sighed. He was clearly still worried though. "You're…right. I'll go-"

"Tails!" Amy glared through her tears. "Hurry up and sit down so we can go! I need to see with _my_ own eyes that Shadow can't heal her!"

Tails didn't bother to finish his statement, finding a seat to avoid the pinkette's wrath, careful of his fractured tails.

"So…" Red addressed Silver, resting his elbow on his knee and holding his chin in his palm. TT was getting ready for take off. "The kid doesn't have to worry about any robotic hazards, right? You took care of him?"

Red didn't have enough energy to be surprised when Silver shook his head. "He uh…got away. He has no arms though…" The psychic dropped his gaze. "…but that doesn't really matter since he has my powers…"

The echidna was marginally impressed. Grey wouldn't have been this calm. "It doesn't matter. He'll go down eventually." Red released a puff of air. "Rabbit's destroyed."

"She is?" Blaze leaned forward before hissing in pain. She resumed when the discomfort died down. "So that leaves Psy, Metal Sonic, Boar, the other Omega, and…Bat at large. Hopefully the others can eliminate at least two from that equation."

 _Yeah,_ Red slumped more in his seat, _Hopefully._

* * *

Bat felt weird, and he couldn't put a finger on why. It was like his body changed, but it didn't…? Nevermind, he could figure out that mystery after he found Master and showed Boar what for.

The blood splattered robot sliced through the air as he traveled along a downward slope, blue lights reflecting off his metallic hide. He was reaching the deepest floor of the base, getting closer to taking his revenge on that stupid robot.

Bat managed to stay airborne even at his wings twitched. "A-And Master is g-going to cheer me on…"

The mech flew through the set of doors at the end of the transitional hallway. Bat paused for a moment, wondering where the chameleon and traitor might be. They had to be down here; there wasn't any sign of them up above.

"C-Chaos emeralds…th-they are looking for them, b-but I don't even…" Bat scanned the open space he had come across and the many exits it had. "I-I'll just start in the r-room with the g-giant emerald and go from there." With those words, he soared off.

After a few minutes off turning corners, Bat was almost there. Hopefully they were close by so-

The robot hovered in place when a faint grumble reached his auditory sensors. Not knowing what to make of it, Bat disregarded the unnatural sound and pushed on. He didn't go far however, because noise was growing _louder._ He didn't have a single clue to what was going on, but-

Bat glanced over at a window beside him and got closer to it when something seemed peculiar. He then pressed his hand against the glass. It was vibrating, and the quivering became stronger with each passing second. "Wh-What is going on?" Were Master and Boar doing this? Was someone _else_ doing this? He was going find out.

It was too bad that the answer smacked him right in the face a moment after.

Bat was immediately disoriented, flipping end over end as the sheer force of the water propelled him back and under. He wasn't in control of his own body anymore. Differentiating up and down was near impossible. Well, until he was slammed hard into a wall and stuck there, unable to push against the powerful current. He was lucky that he wasn't biotic, for he surely would have been knocked out and breathless after that crash.

So, to answer his own question from before, that rumble was this place being _flooded_.

He wished that he had gotten the memo.

Bat had no choice but to wait it out until he could freely swim. Meaning that his confrontation would Boar would be pushed back even further and…

…Or, maybe not.

He spotted a dark shadow in the water coming right for him. It took about a second to recognize that it was the object of his musings. Boar was speeding through, using the current to his advantage. He sharply turned to avoid crashing into the same wall Bat had, and the winged robot didn't expect to be yanked behind the Penumbra-look-alike.

However, Boar wasn't the one that had grabbed him. Their creator – who Bat hadn't seen until now – had a vice-grip like hold on his wrist. Sabo gave him a fleeting glance before training his gaze forward. Boar hadn't acknowledged his existence yet, too busy navigating and holding onto the chameleon. It was fine. Bat would make himself and Master proud when they got out of this mess.

They remained underwater until they reached the transitional hallway Bat had traveled earlier, and Sabo was glad that they finally breached the surface. His suit didn't have a built-in oxygen supply, and the pocket of air his sturdy water-proof armor contained before the flood had nearly been replaced with carbon dioxide.

The water level was still rising, but it had lost a majority of its momentum. They could easily outrun it now. They had to get to the top floor. That should buy them plenty of time.

Sabo took a deep breath as he got to his feet, drops of water rolling off him. He tried to activate his jet pack, but it was malfunctional. He clenched his fists. "Bat, carry me. We're going to the top." Now that they were out of the water, he didn't trust Boar enough with his person.

"A-Alright…" The winged bat held him under his arms and flew off. Boar was on his heels, giving Bat a smirk as he caught up. Bat narrowed his opticals at him before regarding Sabo. "Wh-What happened down there?"

"That's not important," Sabo snapped, wanting to forget _everything_ that happened, but knowing that he wouldn't be able to do so. The chameleon's heated amber orb focused upwards at his mech. "What _is_ important is what are _you_ doing back down here?"

"I-I definitely k-killed the targets, if that's what you're worried about!" Bat chirped, flapping his wings. His voice then lowered. "I-I'm actually here to get revenge on B-Boar for what he did to me."

The hedgehog replica produced a snort. "That's cute. You came here to take me down?"

"Y-Yes! E-Exactly!"

Boar nudged Bat a little too hard, causing Sabo to wobble in the air as well. "That joke had potential Batty, too bad it fell flat."

The reptile glared at the striped mech, his frown anything but subtle. "I should let him do it. Considering-"

"Considering what?" Boar gestured to himself. "I just saved your _life._ You're going to punish me for that?"

Sabo growled, too shaken about this whole situation to remain level headed. "No, I'd be punishing you for thinking about throwing me to our _enemy_ up there-"

"- _After_ I opened the door that trapped us inside that room. Do you really think I was going to feed my creator to the dogs like that? I was just teasing."

 _If that isn't the most blatant lie…_ Sabo thought about his predicament. Shadow and an unknown amount of others were most likely going to Super above ground and hunt him down. His hastily made plan was for him to retreat until those Chaos emeralds were out of the picture. But what if he got spotted? Well, he needed as many distractions as possible. Having Bat and Boar duke it out could possibly down him two robots, and he couldn't have that. But on the other hand…Boar was dangerous all by himself.

Bat's gears whirled in agitation. "C-Can I please attack h-him?"

"…No."

"W-Wha…W-Why?"

Boar barked out a mechanical laugh. "Because he knows that you're no match for me."

If Sabo had known that his creations would've acted like feuding siblings, he would've bypassed giving them any sort of intelligence in the first place. "The real answer is because I need you at full health, Bat."

"Which is basically what I said."

Sabo didn't bother refuting that, for he had heard something that caught him off guard. "S-So I let them go, for n-no reason…?" Bat mumbled that, and the reptile's eye narrowed into a slit, wishing he'd misunderstood.

"What was _that_ , Bat?"

Said winged machine lost some of his composure. "N-Nothing! I-It was-"

"Where are you three going?" The metal clad trio whipped their heads forward at the new voice. They were in a narrow hallway now, and a dented Metal Sonic was flying towards them. "Do you not realize that the Master Emerald had been compromised? We need to go down there and-"

"We _fully_ understand what's going on here, Metal." Sabo gnashed his teeth together. All of them were hovering in place, and the blue bot was staring at him intently. "It's flooded down there. Those echidnas got in and did something to the emerald. That's why you're not feeling the energy."

Boar glanced between the two. "…Energy?"

"S-So that's why…" Bat put together.

Metal snapped his gaze onto the striped robot. "Why are _you_ here? I should destroy you for-"

"You're sounding like Bat now." Boar interrupted before nodding over at Sabo. "Ask him to fill you in."

"We _don't_ have time for this. Put me down, Bat." The robot obeyed, and Sabo began pacing as soon as his feet hit the floor. They would keep moving once they saw water, but for now, he needed to make sure that he _wasn't_ caught by those annoyances. Speaking of them… "Metal, I'm sure that you found heroes to fight, yet?"

"Correct," Metal confirmed, forgetting about Boar, for now. "My annoying copy and the psychic we had held hostage earlier."

"Great, with those two gone, it means that-"

"…They are still alive."

Sabo paused in his stride, glaring at the offending mech with all the heat in the world. " _What?_ They're still _alive?_ That's three strikes, Metal!" The reptile exclaimed, _this_ close to punching the Sonic replica. "You thought my double was me, then Shadow and Sonic were somehow freed, and then you pull _this!_ Bat was able to be valuable, but you _couldn't?_ "

Bat suddenly found the nearby wall very interesting. Metal's opticals flashed. "Do not get testy with me, chameleon. I came down here because of the Master-"

"Shut up! Just…shut up." Sabo continued pacing, three pairs of eyes following his movements. "I don't care anymore. We just need to go and _hide_ until-"

"Hide? We are not hiding," Metal opposed like the word alone had insulted his entire existence.

"Yes, we _are_ ," the reptile hissed, venom in his tone. "You seem to have history with this place's Sonic, so I assume you are familiar with the term 'going Super' and how fighting them now will be _useless!_ " Metal didn't respond, obviously not expecting this information drop. "I'm not saying that we surrender. We just need to bide our time until the emeralds are scattered once more."

Boar rolled his opticals. "I'm completely lost, but the small details don't matter." He pointed at the purple suited Mobian. "What I'm hearing is that there is still going to be a show?"

Sabo nodded, wondering if Boar would stop jumping sides every two seconds at this affirmation. It was nothing but wishful thinking. "Yes, it won't be flashy, but there will eventually be one once they power back down." His tone then hardened. "And you will stay by my side the _whole_ time, do you understand?"

"Or else what?" Boar sneered sardonically, revealing sharp metallic teeth. His gaze flickered over to Metal Sonic and Bat. "You're going to sic them on me? They're not much of a threat, and you aren't either, to be honest."

Before Bat and Metal could retaliate and before Sabo exploded, the chameleon's attention was captured by a new arrival. He instantly calmed down, though the sight of the newcomer's less than ideal condition rose his blood pressure. " _He_ is though." The robot's followed his line of sight, and Boar's arrogance dissipated. "In case you don't know, Psy can-"

"I know good and well what he can do," Boar unenthusiastically uttered.

"-tear you apart at my command," Sabo finished just for the satisfaction of hearing it. At the striped bot's silence, the chameleon focused on Psy, feeling a headache coming on. His lack of arms clearly stated that he had been fighting.

The white mech saw Boar and hesitated in his approach. "Boar. State your business here."

Sabo sighed. "Psy, ignore him and explain yourself." _Please say that you've killed someone…_

Said robot complied with no argument. "I came back here for repairs. I paused my fight in order to do that."

… _Of course you did._ The reptile took a deep and steady breath to keep from taking everything out on his bots. "It's going to be while before you can finish it, and you won't receive repairs. We have to go into hiding because the situation's become dangerous. We have to leave for the time being."

Psy simply nodded. "I'll follow you."

Sabo gestured to him, giving Boar a pointed look. "That's what loyalty looks like. Learn."

Boar shrugged. "I'm loyal, just sporadically."

"W-What about Rabbit and O-Omega?" Bat questioned, "A-Are we going to g-get them?"

"Rabbit's a lost cause. Some heroes had gone for the Master Emerald and succeeded. They had to have defeated her to do it. Omega…there's too much of a risk."

"M-Man… S-She was feisty and I really liked Omega's e-explosions!" Bat's arms waved in the air.

"It cannot be helped." Metal glanced the way he came. "If we are to go with this cowardly plan-" Sabo disregarded that jab. "-then how are we going to leave this base? Certainty not out of the front door."

"I'm not _stupid_ , Metal," Sabo bit out, "There's another exit. Carry me again Bat, and let's go."

* * *

Shadow lowered his hands as he finished up Sonic's neck, the hero shooting him the most appreciative smile he could manage as he pulled back. The Ultimate Lifeform picked up the two emeralds at his feet as he stood up from his squatting position. He nodded in response, a multitude of emotions whirling within him.

Rage, hatred, confusion, and guilt, just to name a few.

Why couldn't he heal Rosy's ears? How could she be _that_ damaged? Dammit…If he hadn't been caught by Rabbit in the first place, if he hadn't needed to be _rescued,_ then maybe she'd be still able to hear. He knew that it was a stretch, but it wasn't necessarily wrong…

Shadow was jolted from his thoughts by a hand on his shoulder. Only now did he realize his visually tight grip on the gems.

"It's not anyone's fault but that grimy reptile's, hon." Rouge's fingers slipped off. She shrugged a shoulder. "And Bat's fault too, but mostly Espio's little twin."

"And plus Shads…" Sonic's voice was less raspy. "If you did blame yourself of some odd reason, make sure to fit me in that as well." He racked fingers through his azure quills. "I was part of the reason we needed rescuing in the first place. I mean, losing to a bunny? That's a low blow we shouldn't have taken." A few forced chuckles escaped his lips while Shadow wondered if he and the hero had shared the same train of thought earlier. "But we shouldn't think about the past, yeah? Let's move forward! So what's the next step?"

"Find my Amy, go Super, and smash Sabo's face in. Repeatedly." Grey listed off with a hint of a growl in his voice. He was healed up as well, burn and headache gone. "Did I miss anything?"

Rouge's brow knitted together. "Sabo?" Her facial features relaxed when Sonic informed her that it was the name of their infamous chameleon. "Fitting."

 _Not that we'll ever use it after today_ , Shadow inwardly snarled before replying to the white hedgie. "No. That's exactly what we're going to-" The rest of his words died in his throat when the stairs they were occupying suddenly became more crowded. It was safe to say that Knuckles, Vector, and Espio had relayed the upsetting information; a bloody Boom was already launching himself at the striped hedgehog.

Shadow braced himself, but it was unnecessary. Penumbra had restrained the azure speedster with a frown, struggling to keep Boom back with a firm grip on the other's arm. "Stop!" He sounded borderline exasperated. "Shadow friend! No attack!"

Rogue rubbed his forehead with a sigh. "This is kinda getting old, bro…"

Boom didn't respond to them, but he had ceased trying to lunge. He glared at nothing but Shadow, wiping his dripping nose. "Explain. _Now._ "

"I told him what you told us," Espio muttered, and the Ultimate Lifeform rose a curious brow at the bruise on the reptile's cheek. That wasn't there before. Considering how Boom was basically was foaming at the mouth, he could connect the dots.

"Then there's nothing else for me to say," Shadow retorted tersely. "So calm yourself, hedgehog, before I make you."

Emerald orbs darkened. "Penumbra, let me go so I can shove my foot so far up his _ass-_ "

"Don't make me slap you again, man!" Rogue exclaimed, getting in Boom's face. "It's not Shadow's fault! Or anyone else's here! You constantly get mad at the wrong people!" The ghost of a shaky smirk appeared on his muzzle as he lightly jabbed the blue Mobian's chest. "You need to save it all for that _one_ person who needs it the most so you can eff him _all_ the way up."

Boom focused on the winged male, and his stance infinitesimally relaxed. It was enough for Nummy to release him. "Give me some space before I punch you."

Rogue held his hand up innocently. "Will do."

"Yeah, I agree with Rogue here." Sonic placed a hand on his hip, nodding at the bat. "No friendly fire, alright?"

Boom merely crossed his arms and grunted, still sending Shadow daggers. The striped hedgie was actually surprised that the other had been subdued that easily. Well, it could also be the fact that Grey was glaring at the speedster just as hard, and that Boom wouldn't have been able to get to Shadow even if Penumbra wasn't there.

"WHERE IS THE INJURED GIRL?" Omega asked, and Rouge whistled lowly at all the damage her teammate had received.

"She's with the others." Shadow eyed Omega's condition as well. "Who did you fight?"

"THE OTHER INFERIOR ME."

"That murderer is nothing but a pile of shit now." Boom's voice was a cracking whip. He finally tore his gaze off of Shadow and focused on his twin and the psychic. "Metal _better_ be sinking to the bottom of this damn lake."

Grey scratched the back of his neck, suddenly ashamed. "About that…" Boom's quills bristled, and he hastily explained. "Sonic was already hurt and I had a massive migraine and-"

"-And he flew back to the base. But we'll finish him off." Sonic gave a thumb's up. "Definitely."

Shadow mentally counted the Chaos emeralds present as the hero spoke. He himself had three, and the group that had popped in still had three as well. One was in Penumbra's hand, and the second and third were tucked in Nummy's and Boom's quills. The last two missing ones had been in the Tornado, which was with the distant group.

"We just have to wait until the others get back," he informed.

"Why can't we just teleport to them?"

"Yeah, where are they?" Knuckles added onto Rouge's question.

Shadow kept quiet for a moment as he blocked out the energies emitting from the shining jewels around them. Once he managed to do so, he reached out – focusing hard – and feeling two more in the distance, steadily getting closer at a decent speed.

"They're returning with the emeralds in the plane," he uttered, raising his Chaos emeralds higher, "so warping to them would be dangerous. However, I can take us where they'll most likely hand."

The large group found themselves in the presence of a close-eyed Eggman on top of the high wall.

Boom scanned the injured human before tisking. "I don't even care."

"Gah!" Eggman shouted in surprise, quickly sitting up and groaning in pain. He saw all of the Mobians before focusing on one. "Will you finally heal me _now,_ Shadow?"

Penumbra growled low in his throat at the human, and Shadow replied, "No."

Sonic blinked at his arch-nemesis and his metal accessory. "What happened?"

"It doesn't matter!" Eggman hissed. "I'm in _pain!_ "

Grey snorted, throwing an arm around Rogue's shoulder. "You deserve _all_ of it, _doctor_."

"Hell yeah," the bat cosigned distractedly, rotating his ears, listening for any incoming aircrafts.

"Shadow…" Both Sonic and Rouge began at the same time.

"I'll do it when all of this is over," Shadow said with finality. "Not a second before then."

"Understandable…" Espio gently rubbed the side of his face.

Vector bobbed his head. "Completely."

Eggman mumbled angrily to himself, and a handful of minutes after that, the G.U.N. jet had come in for a landing.

The aircraft had barely stopped moving before the door flung open, and two pinkettes ran out into the open. One was limping and her irate eyes were trained on Shadow; the other was being dragged behind, ears folded and face damp.

"Shadow!" Amy yelled, pausing in front of the sizable group. However, before she could continue, a stormy eyed Grey leapt forward and wrapped Rosy up in his arms.

"It's not fair. It's not fair. It's not _fair_ …" He muttered against her forehead, unable to contain his waterworks as Rosy fought to restrain hers. She couldn't hear him, but she knew…

Speechless at the sight of the blood and how _defeated_ his friend looked, Rogue was drawn in as well, hugging the life out of Grey and Rosy. The bat then watched the rest of the passengers filter out, and he reached out an arm as a silent invention to TT. The kit didn't hesitate, and Rogue pulled him in too. Rosy wasn't the only one hurting.

It was too much for Boom to watch; a single thought rampaged around in his mind. _That chameleon is going to wish that he'd never been born._

Sonic just looked on sadly. There was nothing he could do. He couldn't give any words of encouragement, because…because she wouldn't be able to… The hero let out a heavy sigh as Tails stiffly approached his side. "Hey bud…" Sonic noticed his brother's broken namesakes. "Didn't go well, huh?"

"No…" The kit breathed out, distressed. "Psy got away, and well…"

It was hard to miss Blaze's and Amy's injuries. "Yeah…"

"Shadow…" Amy started again, lower than before. She sniffed. "I have to see with _my_ own eyes that you can't heal her. I refuse that's she's really…"

The black Mobian knew that doing this wasn't going to change anything. But he couldn't refuse her, could he? If it had been Maria, he would've asked the same. Shadow handed the two emeralds he was holding to Rouge before approaching the group hug.

Rogue saw him first and pulled back. Grey followed suit along with TT. Rosy's cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bloodshot. Shadow stepped closer to her and said clearly, "Let me try again."

Unexpectedly, the pinkette shook her head. "W-Wait…" Her foggy jades searched around under they found another hedgehog. "Let Nummy do it…you've already…"

Shadow stared at her for a moment before nodding. It made sense, however…the result will be the same. "Penumbra." When his twin perked up at his name, Shadow gestured at Rosy's ears and said, "Heal."

As Nummy walked over, the Ultimate Lifeform went to fix Tails' bones. He didn't need to watch. When he was halfway done, Penumbra called to him. "Shadow! No…heal…?"

He felt the depressing atmosphere smoother him. "Then stop," he responded without turning around. Tails muttered a near silent thanks when Shadow finished, and Shadow ignored Sonic's gaze as he refaced the scene. The hug composed of only Rosy, Amy, and TT now. Nummy was visibly upset and confused. "Heal Amy's leg, Penumbra." His twin obeyed and the pinkette let him.

Shadow walked past Eggman to get to Blaze; even the doctor was strangely silent. He placed gentle fingers on the feline's midsection and parted his lips. "How did your fight go?" He murmured to both her and the close-by Silver.

"We lost Psy." Blaze pleasantly sighed.

"It was tough." Silver observed Shadow's work with his lips twitching downwards. "We managed to keep the two Chaos emeralds though." He tossed the gem in his hand up and pointed to the one hidden in his quills.

"Good." Shadow lifted his hand from the sealed slash, deeming the lesser cuts not important enough to take care of at the moment. "Because we'll need them now." _So, we have the seven emeralds…plus one._ His lips thinned. He needed the extra to not threaten their plan. If they couldn't go Super, it wouldn't be the end of the world, but…

"Fakers, Penumbra, other Silver," Shadow's strong voice cut through the gloom, attracting everyone's attention. Rosy turned to look only after TT had. "Come over here so we can end this."

He pulled out his gem from his spines, and Silver did the same with the extra one he had. Boom palmed his as he strolled over, expression sharp. Sonic trailed after him after getting the jewels from Rouge. Grey guided Nummy over, gripping the emerald from the striped one's quills. Penumbra frowned at him, but didn't say anything.

They stood in a loose circle, and the gems' reaction was instant. Seven of the emeralds floated into the air, and the red one in Shadow's hands stayed put. He marginally tilted his head before tucking it back where it was safe. It wasn't even reacting with the others, one less concern for him.

Shadow's rubies soon reflected the increasing luminosity of the spinning emeralds. They were rotating faster and faster and he could feel the pure _power._

 _Here we go._

* * *

Sabo honestly didn't know why he had believed that using this exit would be a quiet affair.

They were currently waiting for massive doors that were meant to release just as impressive aircrafts to open up. The chameleon should've known better. But what other option did he have? None. So he impatiently stood as hydraulics creaked and groaned and made as much noise as _possible_ as they slid apart.

"Here's to hoping that they're all deaf." Boar jeered behind him.

"We're on the far side of the base," Sabo stated through gritted teeth, "It may be loud but-"

"W-We could be lucky?" Bat provided. "I-I really d-don't want to be dismantled."

Metal boosted forward as soon as the gape was wide enough to fit through. "Then stop talking and fly."

"R-Roger." The winged mech activated his jets too, but neither he nor Metal were going full speed. They hovered in the air once they were outside, searching the water, land, and the high towers. There was no sign of the heroes. "A-All clear!" Bat gestured for the rest to follow.

Sabo nodded before turning himself invisible. He ran after them, squinting when rays of light filtered through his mask. The chameleon peered over his shoulder to see Psy and Boar fly close behind him, not passing. They were in formation. Boar and Metal were in front as scouts, and Psy and Boar were in the back for protection. Also so that the striped robot couldn't pull any tricks.

"Then let's go." Sabo whispered and he began running. To his luck, there was a large stretch of rocky land in front of him, so they could stay as inconspicuous as possible. And so he could send his bots to be distractions while he hid if they got spotted.

The chameleon allowed himself to let out a quivering breath. He soon would be safe from those powered up menaces, and then when the right time came, he would counterstrike. He was on the road to victory.

Until something akin to a comet smashed into him.

* * *

 **Next chapter…someone is going to have a bad time.**

 **Whew guys, 43 chapters, huh? The same amount Alternate Reality had. This fic though…has about three more chapters left. Then…well, I'll keep that surprise a secret ;)**


	44. Chapter 44

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.**

 **Warning(it's been a while since I've had one of these here, huh?)- Things get** _ **intense**_ **.**

 **Forgive any mistakes.**

 **Chapter 44- Mercy**

This surge of power was familiar to him, but there was no way in hell he could get ever used to it.

Chaotic energy coursed through his veins and flooded his mind. It nearly took his breath away, the sheer force of his body being swamped with raw _power_ so foreign and yet so natural at the same time.

Shadow opened his eyes – those rubies had closed once he had been saturated with light – and stared down at his gloved hands. He curled them into fists, energy running wild inside him, even up to his fingertips.

This was exactly what he needed to end that chameleon's existence.

The Ultimate Lifeform lifted his gaze and focused on the hedgehog beside him. Silver's once white quills were now golden like his, standing up and quivering subtlety. The psychic was sharing a grin with Sonic, the speedster's smirk of course holding more wattage than Silver's. Boom was standing by the formerly azure hero. He looked exactly like Sonic, not surprisingly. However, instead of showing any positivity about being Super, he examined Shadow with a frown. Not being the only one to go Super most likely still bothered him.

"Wow…this is…" Shadow snapped his attention over to Grey, who was panting slightly. His eyes were wide and his hands were visibly shaking. "It feels like…I've been dumped in freezing water and boiling lava at the same time, but it feels _awesome!_ " He took a steadying breath to reduce his trembling. It didn't work. "It's a…" He forcefully chuckled. "It's a little too much though…isn't it?"

"Yeah, it can be a bit overwhelming for a first-timer, but-"

Sonic interrupted himself with a yelp when a shining Penumbra zoomed over his head before blipping out of existence. Nummy reappeared beside a startled Rogue, his body scrapping against the stone before shooting up into the sky, disappearing again. Shadow glimpsed his twin's expression; it was a mixture between panic and...hurt?

Wind weaved between the members of the shocked group when Penumbra popped into sight and flew right off the wall, into a nearby tower. The rock didn't stop him. He went right through it before diving into the water below, causing a massive splash. Nummy breached the surface not a second later, zipping around like a hummingbird on caffeine.

"Why…What's happening?!" Rosy frantically asked, glazed eyes widened.

Shadow glanced at her and then at the bewildered TT standing at her side. "Tell her…" He gritted his teeth when he heard another pillar in the water collapse, his twin destroying it in a heartbeat. "The energy's too much for him."

"Too much for him?" Boom was suddenly in his face, snarling. "What in the _hell_ does that mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like!" Shadow snapped at him. "You saw your Silver struggling! Penumbra's too inexperienced with this, and his body can't handle what it's been shoved into it." He then spotted Nummy's form, concern building up. This double was shining too brightly and he was using up a lot of energy. Shadow could maintain this form for a good while if he wished, but with how Nummy was acting…

 _Dammit, we don't need this now!_ Shadow inwardly berated himself, _I should've known this would happen!_

"Honestly? I'm not surprised." Grey glanced down at his body before hesitantly smiling at them. "Like…this is a _lot_ to take in, literally. I feel like if I sneeze, I'll end up blowing all of you away."

" _You_ might be blown back a couple feet; it is hard to handle at first…obviously…" Silver glanced up at Penumbra who was basically spinning in circles in the sky, blinking in and out of sight. "What…What are we going to do about him? We can't catch him like that!"

"Silver, do you not know me?" Sonic patted his shoulder, gaze determined. "I can catch anything." Not another word was emitted before he blasted off, eyes trained on his target. Sonic knew that they had to get a handle on Penumbra quickly before the striped one somehow got hurt, and so they could end all of this conflict and call it a freaking _day._

"Hey Nummy!" The shining hero called. Penumbra suddenly stopped in the air, turning to face him. Sonic threw him a supportive smile as he closed the distance. "I'm here to help you! Can you stay right there for me?" The striped hedgehog hesitantly nodded at him, concentrating _way_ too hard in remaining still. Sonic reached out when he was an arm's length away only to grab at nothing. "…Of course you can't." When Penumbra reappeared, he was flying away from him at full speed.

Boom didn't give Sonic a chance to give chase again. He just left his twin in his wake as he boosted past, giving him a vexed look. They didn't have time for this crap. They had collected the emeralds to take that damned reptile down, not to play a glorified version of tag. And plus, if Penumbra somehow got injured because of this, he was going to take it out on Stripes. Because he _had_ to know that this was going to happen.

He cried out in frustration when it seemed like he wasn't making any progress. "Penumbra, just _stop_ dammit!"

"Stop?" Boom's ears twitched at the other's distressed voice as he avoided a weathered tower. "No! H-Help!"

"Well, I _could_ if you'd just-" Boom cut himself off with a growl, putting on the brakes when Nummy unintentionally Chaos Controlled again. "Shit."

Grey was somewhat terrified of what he was seeing. Nummy was out of control because of his inexperience, but the psychic was in the same boat! However, instead of popping in and out everywhere, his mental powers could go haywire! What if he accidentally sent everyone off the edge, or what if he grabbed someone and his energy fluxed and oh _Chaos_ their blood would be _everywhere-_

"Don't panic!" Grey was torn out of the whirlwind that was his thoughts by Silver. His double wasn't looking at him, his now scarlet orbs zeroing in on Penumbra who was about to zoom over their heads again. "Because that would _definitely_ make things worse. Calm down, and let's work together, okay?" They locked gazes, and Silver tried a smile. "You won't hurt him, especially since he's in this form…"

Grey still wasn't sure – he guessed that there was such a thing as _too_ much power – but if his double could keep cool, he could too. He took a deep breath. "If his head explodes, it's your fault." Grey slightly smirked at Silver and ignored the slightly worried look he received.

Silver didn't comment on what was said, for he himself needed to concentrate, but he suddenly felt unsure about his twin helping. One of the reasons he and Blaze came back was to prevent Penumbra from dying, so yeah, he'd appreciate it if the striped hedgehog's head remained attached to his shoulders.

The pair of psychics shot their arms out at the same time at the right moment where Nummy was about to pass over. A cyan aura instantly surrounded the out-of-control hedgie, even though it was barely seen because of the bright golden light radiating from him like he was the sun overhead.

Grey let out a tiny sigh of relief. He had complete control.

Silver opened his mouth to give Shadow the go ahead – because if Penumbra could be calmed down, _he_ would be the one to do it – but the Ultimate Lifeform had already teleported in front of his frenzied twin, holding Nummy's arms tightly.

Penumbra had to be scared for his life. That was what Shadow thought as he anchored his frightened double; Nummy's ears were pinned down, he was whimpering, his eyes were unfocused, and it seemed like he was going to _cry._ All of this was too much for him. Too much too fast. Right now, it was best for him to power down before he hurt himself or anyone else.

He nearly had to squint as he fished for the best words to get his point across. "Push the energy _out_ , Penumbra. Do you understand that?"

Shadow never thought that someone could look so weak in their Super form. "Push out…?" Nummy shook his head vehemently as he reached a near hyperventilating state. "I-I…no understand!" He trembled in Shadow's hold.

"Calm down and _breathe._ " Shadow exaggerated his inhales and exhales so the other could catch on and copy him. Penumbra eventually did, decreasing his respiration rate until it matched the other hedgie's. "Are you okay now?" he asked slowly like he was speaking to a young child. In a way, he was.

Nummy bit his lip for a moment before nodding. "I…I okay."

"Good." As much as he wanted to, Shadow didn't let his double go. Nummy was obviously finding comfort in the minimal contact he had, and…nevermind. Penumbra had warped away, and Shadow wanted to unleash every curse he knew to the heavens. "Where'd he go?" he barked out to the others, searching around and failing to spot him.

The group – along with Sonic and Boom who had returned – craned their necks in order to find the wayward hedgehog. There was so sign until Rouge pointed out in the distance, flapping her wings to elevate herself. "I think he went that way!" she exclaimed, and the rest of the heroes followed her finger just in time to see a golden trail disappear behind a half-deteriorated stone structure.

"That's all the way on the other side of the base!" Sonic informed them, a memory popping up in his mind. "Near where the hangar is!"

"Well let's go get him," Shadow said after a beat, seeing that Penumbra hadn't reappeared anywhere else and hoping that he wasn't seriously injured. He had been releasing _heaps_ of energy. He could be back to normal right now, and falling out of the sky like that… "All you stay here until we-"

"Wait, Shadow." Said hedgehog peered over to Red, who was gazing down at the entrance of the base with a prominent frown on his muzzle. Muted amethysts met blazing scarlets. "Is that the only exit besides the doors down there?"

"Yes." The striped Mobian furrowed his brow, wondering where the other was going with this.

The echidna stiffened. "You said that the other Espio was down there. If he'd wanted to leave the base unseen, _not_ using the blatant entrance, then…"

Red didn't have to finish his statement. All of Shadow's muscles tensed and his quills bristled. If Sabo was in the general area of that hangar, Penumbra's arrival would've been obvious. He needed to go _now._

Knuckles punched the palm of his hand with his other fist. There was a glint in his eyes. It was equal parts eager and enraged. "There's no way that I'm staying here if there's even a _chance_ of that chameleon-"

"Fine!" Shadow interjected with a sharp growl. "Just don't get in the way." He blasted off, Boom and Sonic on his tail.

The non-Super heroes were then made airborne with the help of two powered-up psychics.

* * *

Sabo barely managed a shocked yell before his legs gave out from _something_ ramming into him, sending him crashing onto the ground. The reptile hissed in slight pain – his armor taking the brunt of that hit. _Please_ _don't be too damaged_ – as his head knocked around in his helmet upon impact. He used his now visible arms to push himself off his stomach, his single amber orb snapping back and forth in order to pinpoint what _exactly_ had hit him even when he had been invisible.

It wasn't difficult to find it, for it was still moving.

The chameleon's breath hitched as a striped hedgehog bounced along the ground before coming to a complete stop. Sabo had to resist the urge to punch the dirt under him in frustration. He might as well had just waltzed out of the front door if Shadow was going to find him _immediately!_

"I-Is…Shadow alive?"

Sabo was thrown out of his rather irked musings by Bat's voice. He and the other three robots were peering at the hedgehog cautiously – well, with Boar, he was more interested than anything. The chameleon just now realized that Shadow had went limp, nothing moving but the subtle rise and fall of his chest. Sabo narrowed his eye at a patch of golden hairs amongst the black and red on the rodent's head. They swiftly faded away to the darker colors.

Had…Had Shadow just been _Super?_ If he was, why wasn't he now? And wait… _wait._

Sabo's jaw was clenched as he got to his feet, his suit feeling stiffer than normal. It had to have a dent in it, but that wasn't what was important right now. The striped hedgehog had been laying on his side; the reptile kicked him so that he was positioned on his back. His doubt was confirmed.

"This isn't Shadow," he gritted out, "It's Penumbra."

"…The other Shadow," Psy muttered, stepping closer.

"It's a shame he's knocked out." Boar sauntered up, placing a foot on Penumbra's chest and flicking the unconscious one's nose. "The fight could've been fun to watch."

Metal Sonic disregarded the striped robot, gazing up at the sky. "If he found us, then the rest of those irritants cannot be far behind."

All plans of turning Penumbra's body into a big bloody mess were ousted when Sabo was reminded that he was probably _seconds_ away from practically facing death. "We need to go." _I need to go is more like it. Robots can be replaced, but…_ Sabo's body became transparent, but not for long. Before he could take a single step, static electricity immobilized his form. He grinded his teeth as his muscles uncontrollably quivered.

The chameleon glared hard at a sneering Boar, now floating with Psy holding him hostage.

"Y-You should've let me destroy him!" Bat's angrily gestured at the metallic Penumbra.

The highly irritating ailment had passed quickly. Metal had reared back a fist to punch Boar into oblivion, and Sabo was going to enjoy every second if it.

Until Boar chuckled. "Don't waste your energy on me…especially when the rest of your _friends_ are coming."

Both Metal and Psy spun around on their heels at the other's words, easily forgetting about him. Bat did so as well, and he took a slight step back. Sabo didn't turn until he had produced a kunai from his metal arm and had hauled Penumbra up until the weapon the settled nicely against the relaxed one's neck. Only _then_ did he face his enemy.

The chameleon sucked in a harsh breath when he found Shadow not a foot away from him, snarling nastily. He was floating and radiating a golden yellow, molten scarlets promising nothing but pain and suffering. It was safe to say that he was in his Super form.

Sabo struggled to keep the kunai from trembling with his fingers. He snapped his gaze to the right and left, noticing with a sinking gut that Psy and Bat were frozen, not knowing what to do. Boar and Metal were out of his line of sight.

Refocusing back forward, the chameleon watched as the two Sonics landed behind Shadow, a good amount of space separating them and the striped hedgie. Then the two Silvers landed along with _all_ of the rest. Even Eggman, who was mysteriously hurt. That was one good thing that had come out of this – because apparently Bat had _lied_ about completing his task – but Sabo couldn't bring himself to enjoy that new piece of information.

The only thing separating him from Shadow was this limp rodent in his arms.

"Let. Him. _Go._ " Shadow's voice was filled to the brim with venom.

Arrogantly grinning in his face took more effort than usual. "That plan doesn't sit right with me. You get that, right Shadow? How about you back up, power down, tell the _others_ -" Sabo glanced over to the rest of the Super male hedgehogs, detecting hatred in each and every look he received. He swiftly returned his attention to Shadow, grin still in place. "-to do so as well, and maybe…just maybe, we can have a little _chat_ about our situation here."

Shadow's quills bristled more than they had been; he was bigger and – dare he say it – more intimidating than normal. But that didn't matter. Shadow and the rest cared about Penumbra's life, so they wouldn't risk- "No."

Sabo slowly blinked. "No?" A snort escaped him as he tensed his arm, ready to drain the life out of the one who had took half his sight. "Well then-" However, he didn't have a chance to go through with it. Penumbra had teleported out of his grip, now directly behind his glowing double. He seemed barely conscious, but apparently he was lucid enough to stomp on, tear apart, and burn Sabo's crude plan to ashes.

A hand grasped his arm with impossible speed, and his world changed.

* * *

For once, Shadow didn't know exactly where he was going to end up. He had just desired a place that Sabo had minimal – none, preferably – places to hide because his ability was grating enough without any cover and a place where the damned chameleon couldn't _escape._

When his reality became concrete, he was floating an inch above a bloodied tile floor, surrounded by just as red walls, the liquid splattered everywhere. There was a metallic door that was sealed shut, and if Shadow recalled correctly, it wouldn't open unless prompted from the _other_ side. They were either in Rogue's or Grey's old room in the Westopolis base. It would do.

Sabo had just identified his surroundings himself before he was launched across the room, slamming against the opposite wall. His back dully ached as he dropped to his feet, eying the hedgehog in the center of the space. Shadow looked every bit as unstoppable as he expected him to be. There was no way Sabo could escape from him. Never had he thought that _he'd_ be the one trapped in one of these rooms. Another thing he couldn't do – to his distain – was to take advantage of his invisibility.

Shadow was too fast. He would catch him as soon as he turned clear, and if the hedgehog didn't, Shadow could cover this small room in a blink of an eye and eventually find him again. The reptile's weapons were practically useless now since the Master Emerald's energy was gone. They would be seen flying through the air.

He had no chance of winning this if Shadow remained Super. He had to either prolong fighting until the hedgehog ran out of time, or he had to somehow talk the other into powering down. Both seem like impossibilities. He had to try though, or else he was dead where he stood.

 _Just…damn you, Penumbra._

"It's just you and me again, Shadow." Sabo stood tall, showing no fear. He had never felt fear in Shadow's presence before, he wasn't going to start now. The chameleon's expression was blank as he gestured to the area around them. "There are some changes though. The scenery's not as lush, the energy's not on my side this time, and well…this one isn't exactly a fair fight, now is it?"

The next thing he knew, he was harshly pinned up against the wall by Shadow's forearm. If his neck hadn't been protected, his windpipe surely would've been destroyed. It was a close call though; he felt the dented metal touching his throat.

Shadow snarled low in his chest, baring his teeth. How _dare_ he mention that this fight wasn't fair? Right, because hurting and torturing them was fair. Because killing Cream, her family, and Mephiles was _fair._ "You are the _last_ person-" He pressed harder and the metal groaned. Sabo had gripped his arm. "-to request an _even fight_."

"I realize." Sabo kept his voice steady and didn't break eye contact. "Your side has done things, my side has done more things…but do you really want to kill me with the help of those emeralds? Wouldn't ending me under your _own_ power bring you more satisfaction?" When Shadow's murderous expression didn't change, he added on, "Because technically, I killed you with my own hands. No emeralds, no energy, _nothing._ Are you telling me that you can't do the same?"

"I can." The chameleon inwardly smirked. All he had to do was poke at the other's pride. It would work every time. However, this seemed to be the only exception. Sabo's eye widened to its fullest when Shadow's unoccupied hand effortlessly punched through his suit's torso, the force taking the air right out of his lungs. Shadow's stare was cold. "But I don't need to prove _anything_ to you."

Sabo produced a kunai and aimed for the hedgehog's jugular, hoping that the spontaneity of the attack was enough. It wasn't. Shadow wrenched the weapon out of his hand and squeezed it, bending the metal in half and dropping it to the floor.

Shadow nearly smirked at the flash of frustration in that amber orb. It was time to take revenge on _everything_ that chameleon did, and he was going to enjoy every second of it.

The Ultimate Lifeform repositioned his hands in the hole he made, and before Sabo could attempt to wiggle free, Shadow tore open the armor like he was ripping a newspaper in half. The reptile flailed and hissed when Shadow forcefully yanked him out of the suit, some of the jagged metal carving into his skin and scales.

The only protection Sabo had left was his helmet, and the hero made quick work of that. Shadow palmed the sides of the metal and pressed his thumbs against the glass allowing the reptile to see. The clear barrier shattered immediately and Sabo hastily closed his eye to prevent any glass from injuring it. He _did_ have only one left.

While the hedgie was busy tearing his helmet apart, Sabo pulled the kunai he always kept in his glove and stabbed where he believed Shadow's side was. All he heard when a sharp intake of breath, _not_ the agonized howl he'd been expecting.

Sabo reopened his eye when the metallic dome had been hurled to the side in pieces. Blood was streaming down Shadow's side, sharply contrasting his luminescent fur. He didn't get see how much of a bad idea it was to rile the hedgehog up even _more_ before strong fingers wrapped around his neck and lifted him off the ground.

Sabo struggled for breath, scratching at the limb keeping him from precious oxygen. Shadow slowly clenched his fingers, a deep growl rumbling in his chest. The hedgehog then yanked out the weapon imbedded within him, hiding his wince. Super didn't mean invincible, and getting stabbed wasn't the most pleasant thing in the world. Shadow knew that the hole would heal quickly however. So, the chameleon's attack did nothing but fuel his rage.

The kunai was a blur until it was lodged halfway into the nearby wall.

"I would kill you right now," Shadow's gravelly voice was barely heard over the reptile's wheezing as his stab wound healed. The other was swiftly paling. "But you still deserve more." He dropped him without warning. Sabo stumbled away, coughing and panting. Shadow didn't let him go far, roundhouse kicking the chameleon right in his temple. He went flying with a yell he couldn't restrain, and the hero observed dispassionately when he smacked against the bloody tile, sliding.

Shadow saw him pick up specks of dried blood during his glide until the chameleon disappeared seemingly into thin air. But Shadow knew better and planned his next move accordingly. The hedgehog found the closest corner and glanced down at his gloved hands. A beat passed, and red static akin to electricity danced between his fingertips. This should find him.

Sabo was on his knees, cradling his throbbing head and filling his burning lungs. That kick felt like he'd been hit with a runaway train – no, _plane._ He was surprised that his skull hadn't shattered and that he could concentrate enough to utilize his transparency. As if Shadow wasn't strong enough before, but now…

The reptile controlled his breathing as he got his feet under him, focusing on his opponent occupying a corner. His outlook didn't look great, but at least one of his options were possible. Waiting until the power ran out. He just had to stay alive until then. Easier said than done.

Sabo braced himself for whatever Shadow was about to do, the glowing rodent holding his crackling palms out. The purple Mobian shifted his weight to the balls of his feet just as Shadow let loose. Red chaotic energy rapid-fired out of each hand, the faux-lightning covering every square foot of the room.

The chameleon jumped over one aimed at his feet before twisting away from another that was going to graze his side. Sabo silently landed and rolled, one flying over his head. He then stood from his kneeling position and side-stepped a bolt only for one to strike him right in the chest.

His legs instantly went limp; there was no way he could keep standing under this intense assault to his nerves. He cried out in agony. It felt like he was burning from the inside out, his body becoming unresponsive to him in the process. Boar's electricity was _nothing_ compared to what Shadow threw at him.

Sharp rubies zeroed in onto the reptile when he faded back in, his pained shout music to Shadow's ears. The hero dropped his left hand and continued producing spears with his right, approaching Sabo as he did so. The chameleon had fallen on his face; his arms and legs were twitching violently. The shouts had morphed into screams.

Shadow felt nothing as he stepped up to the other's head, stopping his attack. He squatted down and lifted Sabo's chin with a single finger. His amber gaze was shaky and unfocused. Some tears had spilled out, one cheek damp. Shadow felt each spasm that caused him to visually twitch.

"Now you know how Penumbra felt when you brutally shocked him." Shadow spat. Sabo's mouth opened, but no sound was produced, like his vocal cords hadn't fully recovered yet. The hedgie simply clicked his tongue before grabbing underneath the scaled one's arm, pulling him up to his feet. "We're not done here."

Shadow let him go, and without the support – Sabo's legs were still jelly – the chameleon leaned forward. Shadow was ready for him. He reared back a fist and struck the chameleon's jaw. There was a crack as his adversary careened back, and suddenly Sabo's voice had returned in the form of another yell.

All the reptile felt was pain as he rolled to a stop. His body was screaming for the remnants of the spear to cease, but that was out of his control. In addition to that and the throbbing pain in his temple, his jaw was _killing_ him. Sabo moved it up and down and winced at the slivers of agony it caused. Something had to be broken.

A copper taste had built up in his mouth, so he spat out the blood…along with a _tooth_. Sabo's frame stiffened. Yes, something was definitely broken.

Shadow then kicked his side mercilessly. Sabo clenched his trembling fingers and bit his red stained lips, straining to regain some of his dignity and swallowing the uncharacteristic sob that threatened to spill out.

"Get up." He heard. The voice was curt, chilled, and Sabo _despised_ hearing it. The reptile didn't respond, laying there and regathering himself. There was a mirthless snort. "Giving up on the fight, reptile? After all this time, _now_ is when you throw in the towel?"

Shadow stared disdainfully at the chameleon as he struggled to get up, muscles slowly recovering from that onslaught. Sabo managed to get into a kneeling position, wiping away the red from his lip. His amber orb swirling with hate focused on the hero. The chameleon wobbled up to his full height, voice raspy.

"I…wouldn't exactly…" Sabo lobed blood onto Shadow's cheek. "…call this a _fight_."

Shadow didn't care enough to wipe it away. "It's all relative," he bit.

Sabo coughed some more to clear up his voice. "Are you not…going to give me a chance? Yes, I had taken away your powers, but you had them during our final fight earlier. You can't be entertained by this, just…using me as a punching bag."

The hedgehog stepped forward, getting into the other's face. Sabo didn't back off, receiving the glare unflinchingly. Shadow was going to decimate the remainder of that reptile's confidence. He rubbed the spittle off his cheek and wiped it none-too-gently on the enemy's chest. "I'm having the time of my life."

Shadow then landed an uppercut under Sabo's chin, sending him up into the air. The hedgie followed him closely before aiming a devastating punch to the other's midsection. Blood dripped out of the corners of Sabo's mouth before he was propelled backwards. Shadow cut the flight short, delivering another blow to the chameleon's spine.

Nowhere near done, the hero warped over his enemy's head, forcefully bring down his foot. Sabo dropped like a brick, and Shadow met him down on the floor. The Ultimate Lifeform spun in place before spin dashing the reptile at the right moment. Shadow hit him multiple times until he ended up sandwiching Sabo between the wall and himself, his quills tearing into skin.

Not wanting this to end just yet, Shadow backed off, knowing good and well that his spines were stained. Sabo slid to the ground and folded over himself, wanting to hold but not _daring_ to touch the skin that had been slashed and scraped away. A small puddle of blood was forming beneath him.

 _No…_ A meek thought floated up from the back of Sabo's muddled and tortured mind. _I-I can't lose…I…_ His whole body was shaking again, and it wasn't because of a relative of electricity. But then another part of him questioned it. Questioned everything. _I-If I didn't lose…If I somehow win and miraculously escape this room without bleeding out…what then?_

That was…a valid question. What would he do? Eggman probably would want him dead too, his robots were getting torn apart – without the energy, there was no way they would hold up – and he had nowhere to go. The heroes would surely attempt to track him down and succeed without a doubt. All of his work and progress was gone. There was nothing. He had nothing.

…why was he still fighting, then?

 _If Shadow doesn't kill me, someone else will, or worse…they won't._

Sabo was pulled out of his macabre thoughts when Shadow brought his head down on his unforgiving knee. There went another tooth. Sabo leaked gushing fluid on the rodent's leg until Shadow threw him on the floor, kicking him onto his back.

The chameleon coughed harshly as blood dribbled down his throat. Everything hurt too much to move.

"Pathetic." Shadow barked at him and placed the sole of his rocket shoes on the unusable side of his face. The hedgehog waited until tormented amber met relentless rubies before activating that skate. Sabo screamed – it was primal, from deep within, previously untouched – as the fire scalded his face. He grabbed Shadow's ankle and desperately tried to pry it from his head; Shadow only pressed down harder. "This is for _Mephiles_ ," Shadow hissed in contempt.

When he lifted his foot, the screaming didn't stop. Sabo was cradling his face, rolling back in forth like that would sooth the pain. His skin blistered and bled. Shadow bent down and seized the chameleon's right arm with both hands. The reptile wasn't paying attention to him at first, but as he bent the limb the _wrong_ way, Shadow was soon the center of Sabo's focus. The elbow joint was resisting, but it couldn't hold forever.

"No…No!" It was the first time he had heard Sabo, or any chameleon really, plead like that. If it had been Espio, he would've cared, but since it wasn't…

"This is for Rogue." With a flick of a wrist, the elbow snapped. Sabo's scream was now a blood-curdling screech. None of the noise got to Shadow. He just moved on to the other arm. Sabo tried to keep it away from him, tried kicking him, but it didn't work of course. He gripped an elbow and a wrist. "This is for Silver." Sabo's forearm fractured. Tears streamed down the chameleon's cheek again.

Shadow lowered himself to the other's still moving legs. The hedgehog subtly frowned before standing up and stomping down on his right knee. He bent down and palmed the ankle. "This is for Sonic." He wrenched it up, and the kneecap was shattered. Sabo's voice went out. Shadow reveled in the silence. He then targeted the left femur, lifting the limp leg and kicking the thigh. "This is for Amy and everyone else you've _tortured_ _._ " The crack was audible. Sabo was silently writhing in agony.

The shining hedgehog floated over the chameleon's broken body, becoming face-to-face once more. He jabbed two fingers against the other's forehead, hand shaped like a gun. "This should have been for Cream and her family, but I don't have one on me." Shadow was barely whispering, knowing that Sabo understood every word. His fingers shaped a fist. "But this will do."

Shadow was about to wail on him one last time, but something made him pause. There was something in that dull yellow eye. It was subtle, but Shadow caught it. Relief. _Relief_ had flashed in that misty gaze. Shadow glimpsed down at the chameleon's body. It wasn't bracing for the hit. It was relaxed…like it _wanted_ it.

Shadow glared as he put it together. "You want to die, don't you?" The eye widened in panic, and he knew he hit the nail right on the head. "To escape here because you know that you lost. Well…" Shadow moved his hand down to the other's stomach, surrounding it in warmth. Sabo mouthed 'no' over and over again, voice beyond saving right now.

The Ultimate Lifeform sneered as the gashes mended themselves. Having him bleed out wasn't on his to-do list anymore. "Death is not a mercy I'll give you." He then pulled one out of Penumbra's book, healing the bones next – just the arms. The damned reptile didn't need full mobility. Shadow wasn't doing this out of the goodness of his heart. He would enjoy witnessing Sabo's pain again in a round two.

He stared straight into Sabo's horrified eye with a smirk. "Nor will the others."

Shadow teleported them away from the red splattered room.

* * *

"M-Master!" Bat cried out in shock when the reptile had disappeared with Shadow.

"Bat." Metal Sonic was calmer, not concerned at all about the chameleon's wellbeing. He already knew that Sabo was dead. All of his data backed that fact up. "Focus on your new objective." Red opticals scanned the sizable crowd in front of him. There were four Super hedgehogs, one injured 'hog, one injured human, and the rest were fight-ready heroes. The robots couldn't win this battle. "Provide a distraction."

Bat didn't seem too sure. "A-A distraction? What-"

"Do _not_ question me, Bat. Do as you are commanded." Metal's tone was inarguable.

"R-Right." The winged robot faced forward and rotated his ears, readying to blast the heroes with vibrations that should render them useless. Except for the other Omega, but he could be taken care of later. Probably by Psy.

However, before he activated the speakers within, there was a golden blur and there was a mysterious crunching sound right above his head. Bat glanced up only to find a golden hedgehog grinning down at him. "Can't let ya use those anymore, now can we?" It took a second to click, and by then, Sonic had let him go and launched himself at Metal. Bat just silently watched as Uncle was torn into like it was nothing. He had a gaping hole in the middle of his body. The hedgehog pulled his arm out of the wires before yanking Metal's head right off.

His ears were gone, and now Metal was too…?

At the sound of more metal groaning – his ears may be ruined, but his internal auditory sensors were still working – Bat whirled around in time to see Psy sink to the ground, the cyan aura around his head crushing it into a tiny and useless ball. The winged bot snapped his focus back to the crowd to find one of the Silvers were holding out a glowing closed fist. The other Silver was glaring at Bat with all the hate in the world.

Bat was beginning to think that he wasn't going to make it out of this situation when he was suddenly propelled forward by a kick to his back. He flew head over heels over Penumbra and closer to the formidable group. He expected to hit the ground, but he never did.

He was floating right over the others. The other Silver was doing it with his teeth bared and his golden orbs narrowed into slits.

"Mess him up good! Make it good and _slow._ " That was Boar's voice from behind him, and Bat seriously wished that he had gotten the go ahead to destroy him. Then maybe Master would still be here, and Metal and Psy would still be functional. Bat almost cheered when the other Sonic sent daggers over to the striped robot, and then he was gone. He heard 'Shut the hell up!' and 'I'm on your side! Didn't you see-' and 'What did I just _say?_ ' before the sounds of a robot being trashed reached the metallic bat.

And then there was one left…in less than a _minute._

Bat knew that things weren't looking up for him. All of the stares were trained on him now, and all of them were heated, none friendly. What was he going to do? He was frozen, he couldn't use his ears anymore, his arms were stuck by his sides, and – wait!

"Y-You're not supposed t-to be here!" Bat noticed that there were two pink hedgehogs, two green crocs, and two yellow foxes. He couldn't figure out which ones he had told to hide, so he focused on the purple chameleon off to the side. "Y-You are supposed to be hiding! W-When Master comes back and sees you-" _if he hadn't already_ "-then I'll be in trouble!" Though granted, he was in trouble _now…_

The chameleon didn't reply; his jaw was clenched in obvious anger. The Silver holding Bat barked out a sardonic laugh. "You think he's coming back? Now naïve." The psychic floated closer, and Bat seriously wished that his ears hadn't been trashed. "He's going to die, if he hadn't already."

Bat refused to believe that. "Wh-What? N-No, he's-"

"But you don't have to worry about that." The robot beeped in surprise when one of his arms were torn from his body, frayed wires hanging out. "Because I'm going to tear you _limb_ from _limb_ for making her deaf!"

"D-Deaf?" Bat went to cock his head, but he was reminded that he couldn't move. "W-What are you t-talking about?"

"What do you MEAN what are we talking about?!" One of the crocodiles yelled at him before gesturing to one of the pinkettes. "You did something to her ears, and now she can't HEAR!"

Bat focused on the hedgie he had pointed to, noticing tears stains and bloodshot eyes. He had made her deaf? He…caused that much damage? "I-I'm…truly s-sorry! I-I just wanted to get some blood on my hands so Master would believe me! I-I didn't mean to-"

"She can't _hear_ you, you jerk!" The deaf girl's twin shouted heatedly. "And sorry…sorry doesn't make it go away! It doesn't fix _anything!_ "

"Forget pulling you apart." The psychic next to him growled. "I'm going blowing you to smithereens!"

"Wait!" Bat watched as one of the foxes stepped forward with a big hammer in his hands. _Where did he get that?_ The kit stared at the hedgehog mentally keeping Bat in check. "Let m-me do this."

The psychic blinked before smirking and getting rid of the bot's wings and arms with a small movement of his fingers. Then the formerly-winged robot was suddenly hurled at the ground in the vulpine's direction. "Get him good."

Bat ended up on his back, somewhat disoriented. However, he knew _exactly_ what was happening as the fox loomed over him, raising the hammer. "N-No! W-Wait!" He pleaded. "I-I didn't mean to-" His visual cracked and stuttered when the weapon was brought down on his head. The sky was turning different colors, and static was framing the edges. He was hit again and again and again, his sight growing worse and worse. At the fifth swing, everything went black.

TT propped the piko piko hammer against the ground, sniffing and rubbing his watery eyes. He weakly glared at the smashed robot before holding the weapon out for Amy to take back. "T-Thanks…"

The pinkette softly smiled. "Anytime TT, especially when dealing with terrible robots."

The fox nodded to her before rejoining Rosy at her side. She hugged him tightly and muttered, "Good job, Tails…" TT just squeezed her back in response.

It was silent for a moment, a breeze rustling their furs.

Sonic lowered himself to the dirt, gaze zeroing in on the brother/sister duo, then the decommissioned Bat, and then the rest of his friends. "Well that's that. We have no more bots to worry about."

"You mean that we don't have _anyone_ else to worry about." Red mended, his purple irises drifting over to where Shadow and Sabo had disappeared. "Shadow's taking care of the chameleon right now, and apparently is having fun with it."

VC shifted his weight, crossing his arms. "I kinda wish he didn't kill him, at least not yet. I wanna get some hits in!"

"Same here, bro!" Rogue exclaimed with a smirk. "It's not fair that Shadow's keepin' him all to himself."

Grey floated over to him. "I feel the same! I want to at least _watch_ Sabo get tortured! And maybe even get to deal the final blow!"

" _Hell_ no." Boom was walking back over with a heathier looking Penumbra at his side. His golden and energy-filled body was similar to a Chaos emerald, allowing Nummy to recover from his black-out quickly. Boom jabbed a thumb against his own chest, scowling at the croc, bat, and psychic. "If anyone's going to kill that son of a bitch, it's going to be _me._ "

Sonic had a weird feeling in his gut as they argued about taking Sabo's life. Maybe it was the hero in him, but killing another person didn't sit right with him. Yes, that reptile was horrible, manipulative, and sadistic; however, death was just… He hoped that Shadow left Sabo wherever they were. He didn't want to see it, and going by the subtle expressions of the residents of this dimension, they felt the same.

Even Knuckles, who's lips were twitched downwards. He was _itching_ to pound the chameleon into a pulp, but he didn't desire to brutally _kill_ him…especially since he shared a face with one of his good friends.

"Can you just shut _up?_ " The arguing group members quieted, sending varying degrees of heat his way. Knuckles wasn't affected by it. "Arguing would change anything, so let's focus on something more important. Since we have time now, we have to rescue the Master Emerald from the flooded base." At the confused looks he received, he briefly explained, "Rabbit broke a window down there."

"Yeah, that beauty's gotta get to the surface somehow." Rouge put a hand on her hip, tapping a finger against it. "But how exactly is it going to get rescued?" She took in the Super hedgehogs. "Doesn't matter how powered-up you are, you still need air."

"We can do it." Vector volunteered, bobbing his head over to a surprised VC. "Us crocs can hold our breaths _way_ longer than you land dwellers can."

"Whoa wait, I didn't sign up for that!" VC complained.

"You think that I'm goin' down there alone? Heck no! And plus, I probably wouldn't be able to haul that rock out alone."

"But I don't want to miss-"

Knuckles nodded at Vector, believing him. It would make sense to send the aquatic reptiles down there. "Be safe."

"Hey-!"

"I can take them inside because I doubt it's flooded all the way..." Silver offered. He had been around death before and didn't want to deal with it again, no matter the person. "And I'll help if there's any trouble." Vector gave him an appreciative smile before the psychic picked both crocodiles up and flew into the open hangar, VC sputtering as they went.

"And now…" Red lowered himself to the ground, linking his hands behind his head. "We wait." He stretched a bit as clouds floated by, muttering, "I could sleep for days…"

"W…Where are they going?" Rosy saw the crocs and psychic leave them. Her dull jades then drifted over to TT, understanding what he mouthed about the Master Emerald. "Oh…okay…"

"We might as well relax at the moment. There isn't anything else to do," Blaze commented as she settled down in the dirt.

" _Yes_ there is!" A voice adamantly yelled. Eggman was glowering at all of them. "Now that there is no more danger, can _someone_ take care of this?!" The human wildly pointed to his impaled leg.

Sonic chuckled before going over to the scientist, gesturing Penumbra to follow him. "I _guess_ you've learned your lesson by now, Eggy." He stopped in front of the doctor – ignoring the indignant glare – and regarded an uneasy Nummy. "Can you heal him for me?"

"No want." He growled at Eggman, who seemed unsure about the striped one being this close to him.

Sonic resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "You can go back to hating him all you want afterwards, okay? Just do it this once." Penumbra still wasn't too happy, but he complied anyway. He yanked out the metal quill – a little harsher than Sonic thought was necessary – before hovering his palm over the wound, staying close to the speedster.

Boom derisively scoffed. "I would've let that damned doctor suffer for longer."

Sonic peered over his shoulder at his twin. "Yeah, some of it is Eggman's fault, but not _all_ of it."

"So?" Boom scowled. "Look at you being too _nice_."

"We aren't doin' this again," Sonic said in exasperation. His double pointedly glanced away from him, mumbling incomprehensively under his breath. Sonic was sure that there was a curse word in there somewhere.

The hero – and most of the group – were then startled when a body fell out of the sky, landing hard in the middle of all of them. Eyes widened at the sight. It was Sabo. He had landed on his back, so his blood, broken legs, and severely burnt face was clear to see. The chameleon's chest was rising and falling, and his amber orb was swiveling everywhere. He was obviously alive.

Shadow then caught the attention of many, floating down with blood splattered on him. When he grounded himself, the striped hedgie's gaze swept the crowd and simply said, "Your turn."

* * *

 **Next chapter…Sabo may or may not become a punching bag.**


	45. Chapter 45

**Disclaimer- I don't own anything.**

 **Warning- same as last time.**

 **Chapter 45- To kill or not to kill, that is the question**

Shadow's words echoed uneasily in Sonic's mind, the speedster glancing back in forth between his bloodied rival to the battered chameleon in agony on the ground. "What do you mean, our turn?" Sonic had to ask, a frown marring his muzzle as his focus lingered on the reptile. Sonic had an idea what the answer was, but he had to hear it to make sure because…hadn't Shadow done enough to get his point across?

 _Oh Chaos…_ Sonic turned away from that horrid burn on the other's face. He just watched Shadow, waiting for him to speak.

"It wasn't supposed to be a riddle, _faker._ " The Ultimate Lifeform gave the formerly azure hedgie a pointed look. "I'm done with him. Do whatever you want." Ruby orbs then swiveled toward the others. "Just don't kill him."

Boom could barely tear his attention away from the wounded chameleon as Shadow spoke. Just the sight of that damned reptile filled him up with so much rage, however, satisfaction allowed a smirk to grow. Shadow had worked Sabo _over_. His legs were broken, there was blood everywhere, and his face…oh that was just icing on the cake. He could hardly wait to finish the job off.

Well, until he heard Shadow's last four words.

"What?" Boom whipped his head in the striped hedgie's direction, satisfaction melting away now, leaving him completely enraged. He gritted his teeth in a glower. "Don't tell me you're going fucking _soft_ , Stripes. Especially not _now!_ " If he had to, he _would_ fight to get to that piece of shit. No hesitation.

Shadow wasn't bothered by the speedster's accusation. He'd expected it. He didn't respond right away though, leisurely approaching Sabo. When he got close enough, he ignored the caught-in-the-headlights look the reptile was giving him. Shadow gently placed one foot on the enemy's shattered kneecap, barely touching it.

The Ultimate Lifeform gestured to Sabo. "You call this going soft? I didn't say to spare his life to give him _mercy_. He wants to die." Sonic gaped at that and shared an uneasy glance with Tails beside him. Boom narrowed his eyes. Shadow disregarded any reactions to his words, instead raising a brow at Sabo. "Isn't that right, chameleon?"

The only answer to his question was ragged breathing and a rather pathetic glare.

Shadow mirthlessly scoffed and stomped down on Sabo's broken knee with no remorse. The purple Mobian screamed in anguish and attempted to squirm from under him with no avail. Some heroes flinched at the sound, and some didn't mind it at all. "Answer me when I'm talking to you," Shadow stated, and somehow Sabo deciphered his words.

"Yes!" Sabo shouted frantically, voice cracking. "Y-Yes! You're _right!_ "

 _Look how the mighty has fallen,_ Red mentally commented, having sat up in interest when the hedgehog had returned. _It's about damn time._

Shadow lifted his skate and backed up a step, addressing his comrades again. "So, in order to avoid giving him what he _wants_ , we make this slow and painful with _no_ release for him."

Shadow had believed that sharing that information would get Boom and whoever else hell-bent on killing to keep Sabo alive, to torture him until they were pleased. However, a derisive snort reached his ears, and Boom did not look any more compliant than before.

Boom's golden quills were bristled. "This is the only time where I would _gladly_ grant this asshole's wishes. Knowing that he gets to take anotherbreath while others _can't_ just pisses me off. Am I right, Bat-face? Psycho?"

The duo didn't even care about their not-so-ideal nicknames. "Yeah, I know where you're coming from Shads, but-" Rogue glared at Sabo, who was staring blankly at the sky. The bat hadn't even gotten to _speak_ to Mephiles before he saw his dead corpse. Having the chameleon live after that and the murder of an innocent family wasn't right. "-he has to go."

"Why are we basically asking for permission?" Grey thrusted out a glowing hand, and a bewildered Sabo was violently yanked into the air. The psychic sneered. "When I can just snap his neck and get him out of all our lives forever?" It would be so _easy._ With the emerald energy flowing through him, all he had to do was twitch a _finger_ and it'd be done.

It would've been their new reality _if_ his hand wasn't currently on the verge of being crushed.

Shadow was suddenly in front of him, fingers harshly curling around the psychic's. Grey sucked in a breath at the feeling of severe discomfort. He was about to demand what in the heck the other was doing, but the heated glare he received caused all words to die on his tongue.

Grey flinched backwards – resolve being sucked out of him – when Shadow bit, "Did you not hear me? We _aren't_ giving him the satisfaction of escaping what he's _done._ "

The psychic cut his powers, and his ears perked when Sabo landed hard with a sharp yell. It was only then when Grey could free his hand from Shadow's, gently rubbing it. "It's…It's just not _fair!_ " A hint of desperation dripped in his tone. "He's hurt too many people who we've cared about and you can't just decide _alone_ that-"

"You're right, Grey. No one can decide this by themselves." Multiple pairs of eyes drifted over to Sonic, who was floating slightly in front of a suffering Sabo. The shining hero glanced back at the chameleon cradling the burnt side of his face before Sonic returned to his audience with his jaw set. "So I say that we have a vote."

Boom couldn't believe this. He clenched his fists. "And _I_ say that you are a _dumbass-_ "

"It's reasonable!" Tails bravely interjected, standing tall under the double's harsh scowl. "And well…If you're so sure that he needs to…die then, maybe enough of the others would follow behind you?" He wasn't one of them. Tails was on Sonic's side all the way. Looking at Sabo, Shadow had done more than enough to him. If they lock the reptile up, then he couldn't hurt anyone else, and they hadn't stooped so low to take another's life. "Then you don't need to worry!"

Boom muttered angrily under his breath, seeing the logic in the kid's words and hating it. _Stupid smartass fox._ The hedgie would just rush the chameleon, but there would be _more_ than enough resistance to stop him. There was basically no choice.

"Fine," Shadow said for him, and Boom almost growled. Stripes' tone was sure, like he _knew_ that Sabo would live to see another day. Well, he's going to be proven dead _wrong._

"Okay…" Sonic felt a little relieved. Now there was a chance that he wouldn't witness a cold-blooded murder. Sabo had done horrendous things, but no one deserved death. He clasped his hands together. "So, let's start the vote, alright? You all know what I think." He raked his fingers through his upturned quills. "We shouldn't kill him."

"And I think the complete opposite," Boom spat, crossing his arms and glaring between his double and the chameleon who seemed somewhat interested in this turn of events. "I want to throw that shitstain's corpse in the water. There's _no_ reason for-"

"Death is too merciful. It's what he _wants._ " Shadow disregarded the snarl aimed at him for the interruption in favor of spending a mini Chaos Spear Sabo's way. He reveled in how the chameleon violently flinched when the attack struck the ground next to him. "He needs to be alive."

"No, you _want_ him alive for some _ridiculous_ reason." Grey scrunched his nose up in disgust. "Did you forget everything's he's done to _us_?" The psychic made a show of only gesturing to the striped hedgie and the alternate dimension crew. He withheld a wince when repressed memories down in that underground base raised their ugly heads. "There's no way that I'll sleep well at night knowing that he's still kicking. Even with _those_ legs."

Rogue nodded his head, rotating his shoulder some. Sabo needed to be gone. Point, blank, period. It wouldn't be fair to keep the villain alive while heroes had no choice but to rot in their graves. "Ditto. Seriously couldn't have said it better myself."

Hardened rubies cut over to the psychic and bat, but Shadow didn't respond directly to them. Instead, he uttered, "Three kills, two no's." The Ultimate Lifeform then focused on the numerous others ahead. He hummed to himself. He was sure what direction most would lean towards, but there were some that he wasn't sure about. Red, for example. It was a toss-up for him. "Who's next?"

Tails pipped up again. "I agree with you and Sonic!" He ignored the sarcastic 'Of _course_ you do' from Boom while Sonic gave him a supportive smile. "We've never…killed anyone like this before. There's no reason to start now."

"Yeah!" Amy concurred, jade orbs still glistening from the overflow of emotions. There was no sadness in her expression now however, just lawful determination. The pinkette jabbed a finger in Sabo's direction. "He might be – no – _is_ the worst person in the world! But, like what Tails said, we have no reason to drop down to his level!"

"WE HAVE EVERY REASON." Omega objected, waving his single arm to draw attention to his blatant damages. His red opticals flashed. "HE IS THE CREATER OF THE INFERIOR MODEL THAT HAD CHALLENGED MY SUPERIORITY. THEREFORE, HE MUST PERISH LIKE THAT FLAWED IMITATION."

Amy frowned at the robot before turning her confused gaze to Sonic. "Does…he even count in this?"

"Hell _yes_ he does," Boom confirmed before his twin could get a word out. They wanted to vote, so _everyone_ was effing voting. The pinkette didn't seem happy with his answer, but he honestly couldn't care less. "Four kills, four no's. It's tied. Ne-"

"Tails? What exactly is going on? I…tried to keep up…but…"

Boom was one second away from telling the world that he hated being fucking _interrupted_ , but this time – because of _who_ did it – he held his tongue.

Rosy had concentrated so hard to understand the others, but they had been talking to fast and too often and she…she just _couldn't_. The silence was weighing down on her; she wanted to hear a conversation, a single voice, or even the wind rippling the water… _something._ It was like someone had muted her world, and no matter how much she begged, they refused to press the button again.

Her bottom lip was trembling and her vision was blurring. She was surprised that she hadn't run out of tears yet. Rosy blinked the moisture away though. Everyone was looking at her now; she had to stay strong. If not for her, then for TT.

Said fox watched his sister breathe in deeply to keep her breakdown at bay. He yearned to fix her, to make her happy again, but he could only do this one simple thing. "We are voting to see if…Sabo should die or not."

"Die?" Rosy believed she repeated, and TT nodded. A spark of anger emitted within her spent body. "No! No he shouldn't die!" She hoped that she was yelling. By the slightly thrown aback expressions on her friends' faces, she had no reason to worry. "He should stay alive and suffer because of his actions like I am. Like we _all_ are!" She knew that murder was also wrong, but…that was in the back of her muddled mind right now. "Killing him would be an easy out!" Rosy chocked back a sob. TT leaned closer into her, and Grey floated over to pat her sympathetically on her back. "W-We can't…we can't give him that…"

TT could see where she was coming from. Sabo should have the rest of his life to wallow in the terrible decisions he had made. The fox would have taken the same side as the pinkette…if he cared at all about the chameleon. He didn't though. No matter the current physical state of the reptile, Sabo was already dead to him. Sabo had hurt his friends and _family_ …permanently. Things wouldn't be the same after this. Not ever.

"I…I don't agree with her," he said with as much conviction as he could muster. He expected the shocked stares. He supposed that they thought that he would always be Rosy's shadow. Not anymore. He hoped she could understand. "As long as h-he's around, there's always the chance of someone getting hurt." That's what it boiled down to, the safety of others. No prison was completely unescapable. "But if he's gone, then…"

"We won't even have to worry about it." Grey finished for him, suddenly proud of the little kit. "Solid reasoning if I do say so myself."

"But it is still _murder_ , which is boorish and unjust." Blaze's tail twitched in slight irritation, her tone harsh. How they could be so open to taking someone's life was beyond her. She had seen the future of this world, had seen the life drain from a friend's eyes. It wasn't a hero's – or anyone's with _morals_ – place to kill. "I see that some of you have forgotten that."

That rubbed Grey the wrong way. He puffed out his cheeks. "We haven't forgotten that! That's why we're still here in the _first_ place!" The psychic left Rosy to get in the cat's face. "That chameleon had _murdered_ our friends! The ones that you haven't even gotten to _meet!_ You shouldn't participate in this!"

"I very well _should._ " Blaze hissed, the temperature around her rising sharply. She already knew that she won the argument when Grey subtly backed away, ears folded down and wary. However, she needed to get her point across. "Because if it wasn't for me and Silver, then there would be _no_ participants in this vote."

It was then that the psychic knew that he couldn't push around this cat like he did with his kitten.

Sonic decided to intervene before things escalated. "I've been wonderin' about that, Blaze. Why did you two come back here?" Shadow waited for the feline's response as well, curious.

Closing her eyes, Blaze controlled her temperature again before addressing the blue blur. "We came from the future because robots had taken over. Or more specifically…" She bobbed her head at Sabo, who was staring intently at her. "He had taken over. We were told by Penumbra that it was because he had…defeated you all."

Sonic's mind couldn't wrap around all that was given to him in a few short sentences. He gaped like a fish, wanting to ask many things, but the only thing that passed his lips was, "Well…thanks for keepin' us alive Blaze. _Really_ appreciate it." The cat nodded in acknowledgement, gaze fond.

"Penumbra?" Shadow questioned, not feeling the need to thank the girl after Sonic had. He glanced over to Nummy. The twin was crouched low to the ground, hard maroons narrowed into slits as he glared at the downed chameleon. His quills were bristled, and his muscles were tensed. Not a single sound escaped him though. "He told you?"

Blaze could understand his doubt. "He was…more lucid when we met him."

"What-"

"Can we save the storytelling for later?" Boom felt pleased when he got to cut Shadow off. He met the striped one's heated look with his own. _Doesn't feel so good, does it bastard?_ "Let's finish this stupid thing."

Rogue glanced around, scratching the back of his head. "It's uh…five kills and six no kills. Who's up to the bat next?"

Knuckles' whole body stiffened. " _Don't_ make baseball references." The bat threw him an odd look, but he didn't feel like explaining himself. Rabbit was done for. No need to bring her up again. "I believe that we should let him live. He needs to be reminded of his _loss_ every day of his miserable life."

"L-Let me, remind you…" Sabo coughed up some blood, and he shakily wiped it away. He was in _so_ much pain it was ridiculous. He needed to sway the vote. "…th-that your friends would still be alive if you-" The reptile's gaze drifted over to a sitting Red. "-and him weren't inept guardians."

Knuckles' teeth grinded together, but didn't otherwise respond to him. He was just trying to rile him up. Though, the echidna wanted to _desperately_ sock the other right in his mouth. It turned out that he didn't have to move a muscle for it to happen.

Shadow's fist cracked against Sabo's jaw, and an agonized shout pierced the air. The chameleon was then forced on his stomach, the hedgehog grabbing the back of Sabo's head and slamming the burned side of his face against the ground. Repeatedly.

When Shadow was done, the reptile couldn't lift his head. His breathing was rapid and shallow, the pain from his damaged tissue excruciating. All his mind could think about was the horrible sensation; his body was shaking.

"You talk again, and I'll melt the other side of your face off," Shadow threatened, and Sabo wisely kept his trap shut.

"…If he speaks out again, can I punch him next time?" Rogue asked.

"Get in _line_ ," Boom retorted crisply.

Rouge had her arms crossed, a single finger tapping the sleeve of her jumpsuit. If she was honest here, both sides had their pros and cons. Kill the chameleon and possibly have it on your conscious for a while, or let him live and chance the reptile with _invisibility_ in prison. Both were equally bad in her opinion. So, she had to base her answer on something else.

She let out an audible sigh, catching the attention of the others. "While it's true that I work for a military force that occasionally leads you into some bloody messes, I'm not usually the one who causes them." Teal orbs locked with observing rubies. "Shadow's got more… _experience_ in that field, and if he says let him live," she shrugged, "then let him live."

Boom tisked, severely irked. "Tch. You're just like that freakin' fox!" he exclaimed, referring to Tails this time and not TT. The hedgehog hadn't expected for the latter kit to suggest to kill. Something about that fox had definitely changed.

Rouge threw the insult right back at him without missing a beat. "And you're just like a whining child. How old are you again, hon?"

"Oh…" Rogue hid a chuckle behind his fist. "She got you good bro."

"I'm going to get _you_ good if you don't shut up!"

Red laid back on the ground, hands linked behind his head. "I vote kill him," he said bluntly if only to keep Boom from yelling anymore. He met the crowd's gazes with a half mast stare. "It really won't bother me if I'm not the one doing it."

Knuckles didn't like that answer. Not one bit. "Stop being so _passive!_ " He growled. Knuckles had gained some respect for his doppelganger, but now it seemed like he had returned to his uncaring ways now that the danger was gone. "This is a serious subject and you're acting like we're talking about the weather!"

Red waved him off. "Being passive is not voting. I voted."

Rouge couldn't refute that logic; however, Red _should_ care a bit more about this. "It's true, sugar."

Knuckles whirled on her. "Don't back _him_ up!"

"So it's six and eight. No kill winning." Sonic moved this thing along, feeling a bit hopeful. Though, focusing on who was left to vote, he couldn't let his hopes rise too high. "Espio, Eggman…Penumbra?" Maybe he shouldn't let the doctor vote, but then again, he was a victim too.

Knuckles eyed the wilder striped hedgehog, whose ears had perked up at his name, but he was still positioned like a predator ready to pounce. "Does he even understand what's going on here?"

Unexpectedly, Penumbra responded to his inquiry not a second later. "I understand." Blazing maroons snapped over to the echidna, said guardian furrowing his brow at the amount of hate present, but the loathing returned to the chameleon. "Kill him." Nummy then picked up the discarded metallic quill and blipped out of existence, pulling on the Supers' energies.

Before anyone could ask where he went, Penumbra reappeared right beside Sabo, the weapon raised and positioned ready to plunge into the back of the chameleon's skull. "I kill him!" He brought it down, and the spine was an inch from touching purple scales, but then Shadow and Sonic were suddenly beside him, holding his hands in place. Nummy was struggling to push, but he was getting nowhere, and that was frustrating him. "Stop!" he snarled.

"No Nummy!" Sonic started, "You can't-"

He didn't get to finish, for Shadow yanked the quill out of his darker double's hands, snapped it in half, and threw them far away into the water. "You mean!" Penumbra barked, baring his teeth. He shoved Shadow, but the powered-up hedgie didn't go far. "I want kill! He _bad_ and hurt me and you and friends!" Nummy stood up taller to look his twin in the eyes. "Let me _kill._ "

The Ultimate Lifeform used his current state to put Penumbra in his place. Shadow floated high enough to loom over the other, glaring. "No, I will _not_." A bit of venom leaked in his voice. Nummy was being more stubborn than usual. "You come near him again without _any_ permission, you will be _punished_. Do you understand me?"

There was a stare down for a long moment. Then Penumbra pointedly looked away, still highly agitated. "Sorry," he uttered, but he didn't sound apologetic. He warped over to where Rogue was standing, squatting down low and glaring at the single amber orb staring back at him.

"Calm down man," the bat advised, "He'll get what comin' to him."

Nummy just sent him a bitter look.

"You should have let him do it, you walking pincushions!" Eggman tested out his healed leg, more than thankful that it had _finally_ been taken care of. Even though it was the feral hedgehog who had done it. The doctor got his feet under him, dusting off any dirt. He made a fist and shook it. "I'd be _more_ than glad if that reptile gets to be buried six feet under after what he did to me and my plans!"

"S-Since you let _h-him_ vote, why can't I?" Sabo managed to get out only to scream into the dirt when Boom flew over and stomped on the back of one of his broken legs.

Sonic cringed and looked away at the sight. "Eight and eight. It's the tie breaker. Espio?" He zeroed in on the chameleon who had been silent all this time. "What do you think?"

Boom inwardly scoffed. It was clear what the ninja thought. He was looped in with all the residents of this dimension who think that this homicidal sadist 'wasn't bad enough' to kill. All Boom could bank on now was VC and… _hopefully_ either the other croc or the other Silver had enough sense to pick the right answer here.

Espio didn't respond immediately. In fact, the silence stretched on for a long while. The chameleon's eye was trained on nothing but his twin. His expression was blank; no one could read it. The Mobians there had believed that his reply of 'keep him alive' would be quick, but they were wrong.

"Espio?" Knuckles called once the quiet went on for too long.

The chameleon glanced at him before sighing. "We share the same face. I don't _ever_ want to be mistaken with him in the future, with all he's done. If he leaves this place, if we bring him to the public, then…" Espio closed his eye and breathed out, "End his life."

Red slowly blinked. "Now that's a plot twist."

"Whoa Espio, are you _sure-"_

"He wouldn't have said it if he wasn't sure." Shadow talked over Knuckles. He wasn't completely floored by the chameleon's choice. Both he and Sonic knew how it felt being mistaken for the other, and one of them _wasn't_ a conniving murderer. "Kill is winning now by one." Which was unfortunate, but they had three more people to question. The tables could turn. "Do any of the crocs or Silver have a communicator?"

Tails fished the device out of his glove, lucky enough for it to stay with him during the Psy fight and the unplanned swim earlier. _Please still work. Please still work…_ "Silver does." He held up the communicator up to his lips and pressed the button on the side. He waited for static to signify that it was still functional, and his gut sunk when it remained silent. "It's busted." He frowned before regarding the other two-tailed fox. "Hey TT, does yours work?"

"I don't know…" TT shook his head. "I l-lost mine."

"Well, looks like we have to wait for them." Boom was a bit ticked because of it, but that feeling soon passed. He had a _great_ idea on how to pass the time. A cruel smirk grew on his muzzle. "So instead of sittin' around doing nothing, how about we get a couple shots in? Don't worry, it won't be anything…lethal." Yet.

Penumbra peered up at him with enthusiastic curiosity while Rogue matched Boom's smirk with his own. "I'm so down for that, dude!"

"Wait a minute!" Sonic wasn't all for Boom's suggestion, but what could he do? The vote was for whether Sabo should keep breathing, not to stop causing him pain. Surely some of the others would use that argument against him. So, Sonic just wanted to prolong the experience and hope that Silver, VC, and Vector would hurry up.

"I want to ask him something," he said, and when he didn't hear any opposition – they were too interested in his train of thought to tell him no – Sonic nudged the chameleon onto his back with his foot, lips twitching downwards at the pained hissed he heard. That single amber iris was swirling with many dark emotions. Sonic heavily exhaled. "Why? Why did you do all of this?"

"So now I have permission to speak?" Sabo rasped sardonically before stating, "I wanted to kill Shadow and Penumbra." He felt no need to beat around the bush. "The rest of you simply got in the way."

Sonic's brow furrowed. That wasn't exactly the answer he was looking for – he expected it to be more in depth – but…

"He's talking about _before_ you came here. In your home world." Shadow assisted. "What was your reason for-"

The Ultimate Lifeform snapped his jaws shut with a scowl when Sabo chuckled. It was broken and hollow. "Do you really think that I'm going to open up to you all just because I've lost? Especially since I'm either going to prison or being killed off? You thought wrong."

Boom could've laughed at that pathetic excuse of a stall. "Now that's over with…Psycho, lift him." Without hesitation, Grey used his powers to float Sabo off the ground. All haughtiness had left the chameleon now. Boom was _itching_ to destroy him. "I'm going to have _fun_ with this."

He was going to make the first attack, but then something pink and furry bolted in front of him. Rosy reared back the piko piko hammer in her grasp before letting loose, hitting Sabo in a devastating upward arc. The chameleon shot towards the sky, and the pinkette lowered her weapon, meeting a caught off-guard Boom. She bobbed her head upwards and wiped her cheeks. "I'm done with him now. Th-That's all I wanted."

Boom stared at her for another second before training his attention to the purple Mobian above them. Not thinking, he signed, **"Good arm,"** and shot after Sabo, her baffled expression going unnoticed as he locked onto his target.

The Super hedgie met the reptile near his apex. He clenched his fingers. "This is going to hurt you _way_ more than it's going to hurt me." He didn't hold anything back as he unleashed on the other's chest, wailing blow after blow, inching the chameleon up higher.

Sabo couldn't say anything as he was assaulted, each punch knocking the wind out of him. He then gasped when something cracked within, and he coughed up blood that splattered on Boom's face. The hedgehog wasn't even fazed. In fact, his smirk widened. In a blink, Boom was gone and a heel connected with his spine. It hurt too much to scream.

Boom watched as he plummeted back to the ground. He was about to follow the chameleon again, but something caught his eye.

Rogue saw his window of opportunity and hopped right through it. With a powerful flap of his wings, he took off, wanting to get to the reptile before he crashed into the ground. "Guess it's my turn!" When he had closed the distance, he flipped in the air in order to gain power behind his kick. Rogue grinned as Sabo careened to the side with a piercing shout – that felt good. It was time to return the torture he had gone through. The bat pointed at the reptile flying away from him. "Penumbra! Go get him!"

Nummy's bad mood instantly dissipated when his name was called. He perked up and followed the bat's finger. A predatory grin pulled his lips before he warped away. Now he was crouching in a position where Sabo was rushing straight at him. His claws dug into the dirt before he pushed forward and curled into a ball simultaneously. His quills tore into the ground as he sped off, leaving a track behind him. Once the time came, he leapt up into the air and smashed right into the reptile's face.

Sabo's horn snapped in half, and a scream bubbled up before he could stop it. The chameleon was batted back in the direction he came from at a high velocity. Rogue thought about attacking him again, but then believed that the unforgiving ground would surely do his job for him.

The chameleon's landing was the opposite of graceful. He bounced and tumbled, gathering dirt and dust as he did so. Some of the observing heroes had to sidestep the barreling Mobian as he eventually came to a stop. He was barely conscious, and his remaining eye was starting to swell.

"Oh my gosh…" Amy gasped over his broken moans. "I know that he was terrible, but this is…"

"Amazing payback? Hell yeah it is." A cyan aura surrounded Sabo and he was lifted once more. Grey stood by him, chuckling. "Anyone else wanna jump in?" He waved the ninja back and forth like he was a treat for a dog. "Going once! Going twice!"

Knuckles had been practically waiting for this moment ever since the knowledge of Sabo's existence. He had desired the show the chameleon the wrath of a ticked off guardian; however, seeing the horrid state the other was in…he couldn't do it.

"I WOULD LIKE TO, BUT MY ATTACKS WOULD END HIS EXISTANCE," Omega said, "SO I CANNOT PARTICIPATE. YET."

Eggman had a satisfied smile on his face. "You annoyances are doing the job perfectly; there's no reason for me to step in."

Grey shrugged, making Sabo slam into the ground again before rising him up. "Your loss!" He spun around and cupped his mouth. "Hey jerk, head's up!" The psychic was about to hurl Sabo at a waiting Boom, but a voice stopped him.

"Wait." Grey pursed his lips and cocked his head when Shadow approached him and the reptile. The striped golden 'hog placed a hand on Sabo's forehead. "He needs to be fully conscious for this." The chameleon attempted to pull away, but Grey's powers kept him immobile. Once Shadow deemed Sabo 'healthy' enough, he stepped back and the psychic threw the enemy away with a laugh.

Sonic uncomfortably watched as Penumbra, Boom, Rogue, and Grey basically played a twisted game of catch with Sabo being the ball. His stomach churned. "I have to stop this," he muttered to himself, but apparently Shadow had heard.

He emitted a low scoff. "You can try faker, but three Supers would be against you doing that."

"Three?" Sonic was confused. "But Boom and Grey are the only ones up there that…" It was when Shadow side-eyed him that he understood. Shadow was enjoying this as much as the active participants. Sonic's lips pressed into a thin line as he peered over his shoulder at the open hanger. "Well, fine then! I'll go look for the ME rescue crew and fill them in. So we can stop _this_ and finish the vote."

He flew away without waiting for a response.

* * *

Silver was leaning against one of the blue tinted walls of the underwater base, his golden glow causing some spots to have more of a green hue. He would've been completely relaxed if it wasn't for the subtly rising water level down below the ledge he was standing on. It wasn't anything to be severely alarmed over though. The crocs should be back soon, and then there would be nothing for the psychic to be concerned about anymore.

All of Sabo's robots were destroyed, and the chameleon himself was getting roughed up by Shadow. And if Silver knew that striped hedgehog, then Sabo wouldn't be in _any_ condition to continue any evil schemes.

The weight of everything had been lifted off his shoulders. He and Blaze had done it. They saved everyone, saved the future. Silver allowed a soft smile to adorn his muzzle. It was a good feeling, being destressed. After the Master Emerald was rescued and after they left this place of bad memories, everyone could rest. Silver let out a quiet sigh. And maybe he could spend some more time with the doubles before going back. There was no rush, and they seemed interesting. Especially Grey, Penumbra, and well…Rosy's going to need as much support as she could get. He didn't know her all that well – at all, really – but…

"Silver? Silver, where are you?!"

The yell was faint. He could still make out every word of it though. And that was…Sonic's voice? It had to be Sonic, because he doubted that Boom would come searching for him. "I'm uh…here!" Silver replied loudly, his words echoing off the walls. "In this large room!"

Sonic shouted back after a moment, sounding a bit closer. "What room?!"

" _This_ room!" Silver didn't know what else to say. His ears swiveled around, trying to pinpoint his friend. There were multiple sliding doors leading out of this space, and it seemed like Sonic was coming from his left. Which made sense; that's where Silver, Vector, and VC had entered.

Eventually, one of the sets glided open to reveal a shining hedgehog. Silver frowned at Sonic's appearance when the other quickly found him along the wall. He seemed somewhat distraught and upset. Silver had a guess to why. It was mostly the reason he volunteered for this underwater rescue mission in the first place.

"Hey Sonic, guess they're still arguing up there about…who gets to kill him?" Silver questioned uneasily.

The former azure anthro moved his hand in a so-so manner as he approached, giving the water below a fleeting glance. "It's a…different kind of fighting and that's what I want to ask you about." Silver rose a curious brow, and Sonic continued, "Shadow had brought Sabo back and long story short… We had a vote."

"A vote?" Silver had no idea where this was going. "A vote for what?"

"Whether…to keep him alive or not."

Silver pushed off the wall, appalled, "What? Are you seri-"

"Yeah." Sonic scratched under his nose, placing a hand on his hip. "And what's more surprising is that right now, the vote is to…put him down." Silver couldn't help but to gape. Sure, in the past, he was eager to take a specific hedgehog's life for the sake of future, but he had been manipulated and so naïve back then. No one was in danger now, so why…? "You and the crocs are the last ones to vote and to change the uh…outcome. Right now it's nine to eight."

"Well you know my vote! He should live!"

Sonic grinned at him, relieved even though he had a hunch that Silver would be on his side. "Good to hear." The speedster then leaned against the wall the psychic had been, releasing a long-winded sigh. "And now we wait for the scuba divers." Hopefully they would put a little pep in their step. He couldn't image what was going on above the surface, no wait, he _could._ That was worse.

He felt Silver's eyes on him. "Why aren't you going to tell them my vote?"

Sonic let out a forced chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck. "Kinda don't wanna go back up there right now."

Silver peered up at the ceiling with a creased brow. "What going on up there?"

Sonic tapped his foot on the ground. "Well, to pass the time, my _lovely_ double decided to play a nice game of tennis." When the psychic opened his mouth, he hurried and finished. "With Sabo as the ball." Silver's jaw snapped shut. Sonic slowly shook his head. "Not a pretty sight. But Rogue, Grey, and Nummy are involved too and they're havin' the time of their lives."

"Penumbra?" Silver didn't like that. So, the striped hedgie hadn't minded violence even _before_ being practically enslaved in the future. The future they didn't have to worry about anymore.

Sonic hummed in affirmation, thinking about what Blaze had said earlier. Might as well bring it up again. They had nothing else to do. "So about the future, Blaze told us a bit about a robot invasion and Penumbra. What to fill me in on that bud?"

Silver nodded, more than happy to take his mind off the state of affairs above. "Sure, okay so when Blaze and I got there, it was just overrun with robots. They were chanting about targeting anyone out past curfew."

Sonic whistled lowly. "Parent robots. The worst kind."

The psychic shot him an exasperated look that contrasted the slight upturn of his lips. "We wanted to ask someone what in the heck was going on, so we snuck into a hotel. We ran into some bots and killed them, gaining the attention the people living there. All of them were scared, saying that we going to lead the tracker there. Anyone related to any rebellious actions got killed by him, we learned."

"Him?" Sonic questioned.

Silver nodded. "The tracker was Penumbra." The speedster eyes flew wide; Silver expected it. "I mean, as a person…he was really nice, a bit touchy, but nice. The only bad thing is that he basically worked for Sabo's robots."

"That's…wow. Was he forced?"

"At first yeah, but he got used to the job, and well…" Silver pushed on with the story. "Anyway, he told us that everyone had died at this base and told us to stay out of danger."

"Did you?"

"Of course we didn't." Sonic grinned at him for that. "Penumbra showed us that they 'lived' on Angel Island and told us not to follow. We did. Surprise surprise, he found us. But, he actually helped us out. We said we wanted the Master Emerald and he basically pointed us in the right direction."

"Seems like he turns out to be a swell guy." Sonic commented, wondering how the striped one would be like now _without_ immoral influences all around him.

"He really was! Not really like Shadow at all." They both snickered at that small jab. "So after we found the emerald in the basement, Psy and Boar showed up." Silver's tone grew somber. "Penumbra and Blaze kept them busy while I made the portal. Before we jumped through, Boar…got Penumbra."

The speedster's ears lowered somewhat. It's crappy that they had to witness that. "Well, I'm double glad now Boar is nothing but a pile of parts now."

"Yeah," Silver murmured, "Me too."

Sonic nudged him with a lopsided smile. "Cheer up Silver! You two did it! Penumbra won't die, and the future is in the clear because of you two!"

The psychic chuckled. "You're right, you're right! It won't happen, so I can-" He cut himself off when there was splashing down below. Both hedgies shifted their focus to the pair of green reptiles in the water. They were struggling with the dull Master Emerald. "You got it!"

"Yeah, barely!" Vector gruffly called up.

"Come get us man!" VC panted, "This is probably that ONLY time I've gotten tired while swimming."

"Coming!" Now airborne, Silver swooped down and mentally grabbed the crocs and the large jewel, his current state making it so easy. He returned back to where Sonic was standing.

Said hedgehog gave the scaled pair a thumbs up. "Good job guys!"

"Thanks, even though I was kinda _dragged_ down here," VC groused.

Vector rolled his eyes. "Stop bein' a baby. It wasn't that bad. Let's just go back up and-"

"Before we do that…I got something to ask you two." Sonic's attempted to grin. "You see, Sabo's been back for a while and now he's bein' tossed around like a ragdoll up there."

"WHAT? Without me?!" VC gaped. He was missing the good stuff!

Sonic held up a hand. "We'll go up in a sec. You see, we had a vote up there on whether…Sabo should pay the ultimate price or not."

"Is that even a question? YES he should!" VC growled. That chameleon wouldn't get any sympathy from him. He was the first person that damn bastard had manipulated after all. He just wanted to whack Sabo one good time in his stupid mouth.

Vector blinked at him in shock. "No, we _shouldn't!_ " He hated that Espio wannabe as much as the next guy, but killing him? Sabo was a monster, but that didn't mean they had to turn into ones as well.

Sonic stopped them before an argument broke out. "There's no need to yell at each other. Entitled to different opinions and such…" He scratched his cheek. "Especially because now it's a tie."

"A tie?" Silver repeated. "What in the heck do we do about a tie in _this_ situation?"

"Consult the four, no… _five_ dead _corpses_ that are buried!" VC would've waved his arms around if he could. "I'm sure _they_ would pick the right choice here!"

"That's ridiculous," Vector replied crisply, but he couldn't think of any valid options.

Sonic couldn't either. "I guess we just go back up and tell the others. Maybe they'll think of somethin'." When no one opposed, he led the way back to the hangar. He didn't get lost, and it wasn't long before they reached it, bright rays of light making them squint.

When they emerged, Boom and the other players were still going at it.

Silver and Vector both flinched when Sabo when was hit with an unrestrained kick while VC wished that he could join in. Sonic didn't want to pay attention to that. It was about to be over anyway.

However, when they got a little closer, the Master Emerald flashed brightly, taking the group around it by surprise. Sonic and Silver then grunted when all the chaotic energy flowing in their veins suddenly disappeared. The azure hero fell to the ground and landed on his feet, stunned. Silver had gained back his off-white coloring. The crocs – now standing under their own power – snapped their perplexed gazes between the hedgehogs and the shining emerald.

Sonic examined his peach arms. "Huh. That's new."

"Look!" Silver pointed up into the sky.

The other three Mobians did so and saw a normal Boom plummet out of the air to be caught by Rogue, them landing by a flabbergasted Grey. However, they weren't the main spectacle. Spinning in a tight circle over a dark-furred Shadow were seven Chaos emeralds. They were half-powered again. They spun faster as they rose higher until all seven of them flew off in different directions at high speed.

"Good thing that you don't need them any more…" Vector watched as one of the gems flew off in the far distance.

" _Very_ good thing." Sonic waved when they caught Knuckles' eye. "Let's head over."

"It's back on!" Rouge eyes sparkled at the sight of the beauty coming towards them. She was happy about the new arrival because she missed its luminescence and because it ended the brutal 'game'. It had been like staring at a train crash. Rouge knew that she shouldn't be doing it, but she couldn't make herself look away. "She must've gotten tired of doing nothing."

Knuckles placed a hand on the large jewel that was set in front of him, the rescue squad regrouping. "It's not a _she_ Rouge, and-" The guardian glanced over at Shadow, who was scanning over the Chaos emerald that had remained in his quills. It was darkened as well. "-I think the _real_ reason is that, as we already know, it doesn't like that emerald's additional energy output."

"And we just learned that seven half-powered emeralds aren't enough to maintain a Super form!" Tails added.

"Which is kinda a letdown!" Grey smeared the blood on him – that obviously wasn't his – when he folded his arms across his chest. "Being Super was awesome! And Sabo's punishment is over _way_ too soon…" The psychic smirked over at the Mobians who had missed the action. "You guys want a little revenge? Penumbra!"

Said striped hedgehog began to drag a nearly limp chameleon closer. Nummy grinned before slinging the bleeding, bruised, and broken reptile over, him landing right at Silver's, VC's, and Vector's feet. The detective couldn't take the sight. He looked away. It didn't matter if he was a monster; he was still an _Espio_ , and it made his stomach do flips. Silver was in the same boat, covering his mouth as he gaped, hearing labored breathing. Chaos…was he even _conscious?_

VC gritted his teeth before kicking Sabo in his side, though it wasn't as strong as he originally planned it. Sabo had already been through a lot; whatever he did would pale in comparison to the others. Despite the lacking hit, the chameleon groaned at the contact, shutting his blacked eye in agony.

"That was a little weak…" Grey shrugged. "But hey, it's something."

Boom had observed the trio, and he scowled at what he saw. "Going by your reactions, I can tell what the hell you voted." And if he had counted right…

"Yeah." Sonic put his hands on his hips. "It's a tie. What are we gonna do about that?"

There was a pause as everyone thought. Blaze was the first to speak up. "The easiest solution is to ask if anyone had changed their mind about what side they're on." The feline rose a brow at the others. "Well, does anybody want to speak up?"

Another silence blanketed the group as multiple pairs of eyes snapped around, their owners wondering if someone would actually switch it up and had one side be a clear winner. Just when most thought that no one was going to, a voice shattered the quiet.

"I retract my vote."

Shadow tucked the dull red Chaos emerald back into his quills as he focused on the doctor. Eggman was staring hard at the chameleon with his lips pressed thinly. He was pleasantly surprised. The human was the _last_ person he thought would change his answer.

Boom had a more outward reaction. He hissed harshly through his teeth, barely refraining from giving the doctor the same treatment he had given Sabo. " _What?!_ You fat piece of _shit_. Why in the hell would you-"

"Because I found _great_ joy seeing him get tossed around like the traitorous trash he is." The ghost of a smirk formed below his lush mustache when Sabo whimpered in utter despair. "I liked seeing him suffer and want him to _continue_ to do so. He'll become nothing but a government _slave_ as he rots away in whatever institution he's thrown into." That reptile would have a taste of his own medicine.

This was the only time that Sonic really appreciated Eggman's sadism. "Vote's over! We keep him _alive_ so we can all keep our morals in check and so he can get behind bars where he belongs." There was muted cheering from Tails and Amy.

"Fine." Boom was grinding his teeth so hard that he was surprised that they hadn't shattered yet. His emerald orbs were swirling with so much rage, disappointment, and hate that the sudden grin on his muzzle threw the others for a loop. A snicker escaped his lips. He ignored the odd looks he was receiving. "Fine! We'll let him live, but we can't just leave him like this. All of his injuries will heal. Penumbra, grab him." Nummy did so after a small tilt of his head, gripping Sabo's arm tightly.

"What are you doing?" Shadow narrowed his eyes. "You can't kill him."

"I'm _not._ " Boom nearly snapped, smirk still in place. "I'm just going to leave a permanent reminder of what happened today."

"What's that, bro?" Rogue questioned. He didn't like the slightly crazed look in the hedgie's eyes.

"Like him…" Boom bobbed his head at Sabo, whose blank amber iris was trained right at him. "…I'm going to do a tribute. But instead to Mephiles," he locked eyes with Sonic before drifting over to the lost human, "to our doctor."

Red didn't understand what he was about to do. " _Our_ Eggman? What are you talking about? He's dead. We lost the vote, so you can't-"

"Kill him, I _know._ " The smirk widened even when Boom's gaze darkened. It seemed like everyone was confused. A little hint should help. "Dreads, which arm did I rip off again?" Red's breath hitched when it clicked, picturing the other Eggman's left prosthetic limb. Boom nodded with a snort. "He gets it."

"Get what…?" Knuckles tried to piece this puzzle together, but he was missing one key fact. By the look on half of the Mobians' faces and the soft yet panicked chant of 'No, no, no!' coming from Sabo, it was a big one. "What are you talking-"

"I'm sure they'll fill you in." Boom then lunged at Shadow, and the striped hedgie – not expecting the sudden action – couldn't get his body to react fast enough to keep the speedster from stealing the half-powered emerald. He returned to Penumbra. "Chaos Control." Nummy didn't hesitate, and now there was an empty space where they once stood.

Amy whipped her head around along with the rest of the crew, searching around for them. "Where'd they go?!"

A distant blood-curdling scream was her answer.

* * *

 **It's okay guys. Even without a left arm, Sabo will be all _right_.**

 **...I'm not sorry.**

 **Next chapter…is the last one!**


	46. Chapter 46

**Disclaimer- I don't own Sonic and co.**

 **Last chappie guys! I hope you enjoy!**

 **Chapter 46- The start of a new life**

"We're done here. We can go now."

Shadow remained silent, not responding to Boom immediately. His sharp scarlets lingered on the chameleon who stumbled closer to him, having been shoved forward. Sabo barely managed to catch himself, keeping from falling on his half-burnt face at the Ultimate Lifeform's feet. The reptile was dripping wet, most of the blood washed off of him. His breathing was shallow and erratic as his legs visually shook.

 _Penumbra had healed his broken bones_ , Shadow observed, _At least, somewhat._ It was obvious that merely standing under his own power was a painful struggle for the other.

Sabo's only hand was clutching where his left arm should've been, fingers trembling as they covered the hastily healed tissue. The reptile's swollen amber eye was dull and slightly unfocused as it met Shadow's gaze.

The ninja's voice was barely a whisper, hoarse and broken to pieces. "Y-You're going to regret…n-not killing me…"

"I doubt it." Shadow's reply was crisp, uncaring. That was the same as telling him that he would regret not giving Sabo what he wanted. Not in his long lifetime.

Shadow's attention then drifted over to Boom, who was standing behind the chameleon with his arms crossed. He was damp and less stained as well. "You're right," the striped hedgehog agreed, taking one last look at Kingdom Valley. He would be glad if he never stepped near this place again. "It's time to go back." He peered over his shoulder at the others, whose expressions were ranging from shocked to utterly sickened.

Sonic was in that latter category. He could barely look at the chameleon. He was thankful that the severed limb was nowhere in sight. "Good idea, Shads…"

Shadow nodded. "Because of the condition of the Chaos emerald I have-" That they had to take care of soon…somehow. They couldn't leave the gems the way they were. It wasn't natural. "-I'm going to have to be careful and only take a few of you at a time."

Red shrugged. "Still way faster than the plane."

Boom rose a brow when Shadow regarded him. "Restrain the chameleon until I get to him."

The azure hedgie cracked a smirk. "With pleasure." Boom twisted Sabo's arm behind his back, ignoring the pained hiss passing through the reptile's gritted teeth.

Satisfied with that, Shadow went to approach a specific hedgehog and fox. TT and Rosy both blinked up at him. Shadow exhaled through his nose, still hating the fact that he was useless in healing the pinkette. "I imagine that you two want to get to the hospital as quickly as possible."

TT adamantly nodded, Rosy now focusing on his lip movements. "Y-Yeah…" That, and the fact that he desired to be as far away from Sabo as possible. "We should see if they could do anything f-for her…"

"They sh-should because it's their job, right?" Rosy attempted to smile, but it fell short.

Grey came over and managed the smile she couldn't. "It'll be fine, alright?" he said, careful of his articulation. "You know what? To make you feel a little better before you go to the hospital…" Grey directed his words at the striped hedgehog. "Why don't you take her to wherever Blazey's being kept? She makes anyone's day better."

Shadow narrowed his eyes at him before understanding. He glanced at the others, mainly the foreigners. "You haven't told him yet?"

Grey blinked confusedly at him before addressing the rest. "Told me what?"

"Enlighten him," the Ultimate Lifeform simply uttered before saying the magic words. The setting changed drastically from the flooded ruins to the bustling city of Station Square.

Shadow didn't bother apologizing to the citizens on the sidewalk he had frightened with his sudden appearance. He was too busy scouting out the hospital, for they hadn't reached the front doors of the building like he had wanted to.

TT subtly frowned as he eyed the blood splatters on the darker Mobian's fur. "Shadow?" When he gained the hedgehog's attention, he continued, "Shouldn't you c-clean up so people won't see you…like this?"

Shadow didn't need to check to know that he looked like he had just come out of a slasher film. "They're used to it." It was true; the pedestrians just walked around them without a second glance. "They've seen worse." He pointed down the street, having found the hospital. He hadn't missed his mark too badly. "There it is." TT followed his finger. "Have them phone the Rabbit's home for updates. That's where I'm depositing everyone."

"Okay…Got it." The fox was about to grab Rosy's wrists and head in that direction, but he noticed that she wasn't paying attention to them at all. The pinkette was facing the road, watching the cars pass by and the people chatting about with a pained grimace. She couldn't hear any of it. He could tell it was tearing her apart. TT placed a hand on her shoulder, jolting her out of her daze. "Like Grey said, it'll be okay…" He really wanted to do more for her, but…

Rosy sniffled. "I know…it's just…" She shook her head. "Nevermind…it's stupid. I-I can't keep thinking negatively." TT couldn't resist giving her a brief hug. He then spun his tails, becoming airborne. Rosy held up her hands, and the kit grabbed her wrists. Now off the ground, the pinkette thankfully nodded at Shadow, and he returned the gesture. They flew off.

The striped anthro watched for a moment, wishing them the best, before teleporting back where he came from.

He was greeted with the sight of Grey staring blankly at the ground with Rogue by him, mouth agape. The bat snapped his head toward Shadow when he had been spotted. "Dude…" Rogue took a step forward, brow creased. Shadow was reminded that he along with Grey weren't there when the devastating news was shared. "Is it true…? That _our_ world is gone? That we can't…go back…?"

VC sighed heavily, rubbing the back of his neck. "We wouldn't lie…"

"No, you can't." Shadow closed the distance between him, Rogue, Grey, and VC before adding softly. "It's destroyed…" He looked at the psychic, who hadn't moved. "…along with everything in it." Still no reaction. Shadow wasted no more time. "Chaos Control."

Now, instead of being surrounded by towering buildings, Shadow aimed for a different location, one less populated and away from the hustle and bustle. Blades of grass crunched under multiple pairs of feet, Rogue and VC glancing around and Grey clenching his jaw.

They were in the front yard of the Rabbit's home.

The bat stressfully scratched his forehead, the scene change being pushed to the back of his mind. "I mean…I guess that it isn't that bad? It's the same world after all…" He eventually chuckled; this was crazy. But it was real. Time to embrace the insanity. "I just gotta look for a new pad! No big deal."

"Yeah, it could be worse." Grey's tone was mocking, but his weak glare was watery. "Like, I don't know, you could've had an adorable and precious pet left behind in a world that was being swallowed up by a black void, said pet oblivious to her peril until it was too _late._ "

Rogue slowly rose his hands innocently. "…You got a point, dude."

VC clasped Grey's shoulder and squeezed it in reassurance. "I know it's gotta hit hard, Silver, but all is not lost, yeah?" The psychic gave him an 'Oh really?' look, and the croc wracked his brain. "There's still _a_ Blaze around that you can _actually_ talk to."

"That doesn't mean she just replaces _my_ Blaze!" Grey bit before puffing his cheeks, breaking eye contact. "Plus, she's scary…"

Before VC and Rogue could chuckle, and before Shadow could roll his eyes, a familiar voice joined their conversation.

"SHADOW!"

The quartet shifted their focus to the bee that had charged out of the house, flying full speed with a smile splitting his face in half. Given how ecstatic this bee was to see the striped hedgehog compared to his double, who was happy as well exiting the home with Cream and Vanilla but hanging back a bit, Shadow could safely say that the kid barreling towards them was CB.

"Shadow, you're here! You're saved!" The bee buzzed excitedly around Shadow's head before picking one spot. His smile waned a bit at the blood he saw, but it regained its wattage in record time. "You're bloody, but you don't seem hurt! I'm so glad! I've been looking out of the window for so long waiting and I thought something had gone wrong because I dunno, just _because_ and-"

"Charmy."

Shadow almost had to thank Grey for interrupting CB, for the bee's voice was not easy on the ears in large doses.

CB gasped when he took in the other three's conditions. "You're all bloody too!" He became a bit hesitant. "Did the evil Espio…?"

Grey waved his words away, stepping closer to the insect with a stern frown on his muzzle. "We'll talk about that in a second. But first, explain to me exactly _why_ you didn't tell me about our Blaze?!" When CB's mood fell somewhat, most of Grey's ire dissipated. "Why…would you keep it a secret from me…?"

"I tried!" the bee attempted to explain himself, "but I guess they didn't want you to be distracted…or emotionally, you know…" CB simply watched as Grey explosively sighed, slumping to the ground and laying on his back, sniffling. "…like now…"

"Don't be upset, Mr. Si – Grey!" The rabbits and the other bee had reached them now, Cream giving the psychic a sad smile. "She'll be with you in your heart…so stay happy! She would want that."

It took a moment, but the white hedgehog's lips twitched upwards. It wasn't a smile, but it was progress. "You're a philosophical lil bunny, aren't you? But yeah…you're right…"

Cream smiled, proud of herself for cheering another up, and Charmy spoke. "I'm happy to see you too Shadow!" The bee glanced at VC for a moment, still a bit anxious. "But where's everyone else? Are they okay? Tell me that they're okay!"

"Don't worry little man!" Rogue advised, grinning. "Everyone's fi-" His grin fell as he rethought his phrasing, ears drooping a bit. "Uh...everyone's still breathin'!" That declaration didn't have the same energy as his first one.

Concern spread across Vanilla's face. "Is everything alright?" Her chocolate orbs roamed their bodies, brow furrowing. "You do have a fair amount of blood on you…"

VC bit his lip. "We're alright ma'am…It's not our blood."

Shadow cleared up the confusion before it completely settled. "We beat the evil chameleon." Vanilla's and the kids' expressions warmed. "I'm actively bringing all of the others back here." Shadow then ripped the Band-aid right off. "Most of us are unharmed, but the other Amy…she's being checked in the hospital so she can hopefully regain her hearing." There was no point in hiding this.

The good emotions were gone.

Cream covered her agape mouth with her hands, Vanilla in the same position beside her. "Mr. Shadow… Miss Rosy is…deaf?"

"No!" CB denied, while Charmy was gaping silently like a fish, "No, it's not true! It can't – Silver!" The frantic kid addressed the gloomy psychic. "Tell me that he's wrong!"

Grey was silent, and Shadow took that as a cue to leave them to it.

* * *

When Shadow had teleported away, taking Rogue, Silver, and VC with him, Knuckles eyed the blue speedster restraining a hurting chameleon for a moment before parting his lips. "Did you… _really_ tear the other Eggman's arm off?" He wanted to not believe it because it was a _Sonic_ , but then again, this version of him wasn't exactly the most peaceful of heroes.

Boom scoffed, marginally readjusting the reptile in his hold. "Yeah, I did." And he didn't regret it. "It was the only way to keep that bastard from pulling anymore stunts." Hardened emerald orbs snapped over to Eggman, who was listening with a stiff frame. "Be lucky that you were a victim doctor, or you would've gotten the same treatment."

The human didn't doubt the other for a second, and that lack of dubiousness made his stomach churn. Unlike Sonic, this blue blur wasn't opposed to targeting a living person. And Eggman had thought that Sonic by himself was enough of a nuisance…now he had to think about the possible threat to his wellbeing when he came up with his next scheme.

Knuckles couldn't even imagine _watching_ that, nevermind being the one to pull it off. If he had been there, he would've stopped Sonic and demanded when exactly had he lost his mind. The guardian narrowed his eyes at Red. "Were you there when it happened?"

Red knew where this was heading. He was about to get an earful about 'sense of duty' and 'morals' and all that. Honestly, since he had believed that their Eggman would just quit afterwards, he hadn't been all against it. "Yeah, and no I didn't do anything because Sonic would've then targeted me and because Eggman would be out of commission. He wouldn't have been a threat anymore."

"He never would have shown his face again if _this_ asshole hadn't butt in." Boom twisted Sabo's arm harder, and the chameleon cried out, the sound nothing more than a raspy groan. When the purple Mobian attempted to speak, Boom threw him to the ground and roughly stomped on his back, capturing the other's wrist once more and pinning it to Sabo's back scales.

Sonic would gladly dismember a robot, no problem. But a living person? That's where he drew the line. "It doesn't matter what…" He suddenly changed his subject at the sound of Sabo practically whimpering under Boom's weight. "Can't you just leave him alone? He's been through enough! He's learned his lesson!"

Boom couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Learned his less – did you _not_ hear what he said to Stripes? Were you off in la la land as he basically shat on all of us?" He leaned more onto the reptile under him in spite. "Whose side are you on, _hero?_ "

"No one's choosing sides!" Amy defended Sonic, not wanting this argument to escalate. She was sick of fighting. Nothing good came out of it. "Let's just calm down!"

"She's right, Blue." It wasn't clear who Rouge was addressing. The bat sighed, feeling more worn out than she had in weeks now that everything was handled. "We're all tired, cranky, and emotionally exhausted. Let's just soak in this win and think about how many hours of sleep we're all going to get."

Red let out an amused snort. "Now you're talking my language." Rouge grinned at him, and for once, Knuckles couldn't disagree with them.

"Right!" Penumbra, who was slightly squatting beside Boom and his hostage, nodded at the angry blue blur with soft maroon orbs. "Sonic, we tired." The striped hedgie then glared at Sabo. "No kill…but, we win." He refocused on a listening Boom. "Calm down?"

Boom scowled at him, but he eventually reeled himself back in. He understood where they were coming from. They've been through so much shit; however, Sonic just rubbed him in all the wrong places sometimes. That goody-two-shoed bastard.

"Fine," he spat, pointedly looking away from all of them.

Vector was honestly surprised that Boom actually listened. "Given his track record, I was expecting a lot more yelling," he whispered to his ninja neighbor.

"Even his energy is low." Espio sighed out, desiring to end the day at this point.

Silver had been close enough to eavesdrop, and he had to agree with the croc, given what he knew about Boom and his…questionable actions. And then it was Penumbra who dissuaded him too with his rather limited vocabulary. He was sure if Shadow had said it, Boom would've shouted in his face…

Speaking of that hedgehog, Shadow popped back into existence in front of Silver. The psychic nearly jumped out of his skin as the striped one rose a brow at Sabo's new position on the ground. "What happened?"

"Nothing too important, hon." Rouge dismissed the issue. "Who are you taking next?"

Shadow didn't question it. He didn't care that much. "I'm…" The Ultimate Lifeform trailed off, scarlet orbs finding the large Master Emerald sitting behind Knuckles. The gem he should have considered using instead of the somewhat unreliable Chaos emerald in his quills. It's been too long of a day. "Most of you actually, using the Master Emerald."

Everyone, including Knuckles, blinked at the jewel. The guardian then scoffed. "And you didn't think of that before because…?"

Shadow sent him an unamused glare. "Shut it, echidna."

"Yeah, we can't exactly blame him." Sonic snickered, rubbing the back of his head, pushing his feelings about what occurred before aside. "Our brains are fried, and the rock there wouldn't be the first thing _I_ would think about either. Plus Knux, it slipped your mind too!"

"Whatever, let's just _go_ already." Boom's voice was a borderline growl as he dragged Sabo up to his feet.

"Not everyone's going yet," Shadow said, and those who were gathering around him paused at that bit of information. He glanced around. "Omega, Espio, and Eggman…" Shadow's rubies hardened when trained on Sabo. "…along with him will stay here until I get back."

"WHY IS THAT?" Omega pointed at the injured reptile. "I NO LONGER WANT TO BE IN HIS PRESENCE. I MAY ACCIDENTALLY ACTIVATE A MISSILE AND DECIMATE HIM."

Shadow released a puff of air. "Control yourself for a bit, Omega. You're staying back so I can take you to G.U.N for repairs." He then turned to a subtly frowning Espio. "And you're needed when I turn Sabo in. We don't need any unnecessary confusion."

Espio nodded, understanding. Shadow basically had to explain this whole double business to the Commander, and he would facilitate the explanation by being proof of the whole thing. Also, Espio had to make sure that the police force saw a _clear_ difference between them two.

"I'll take care of him, then." Espio strolled over to Boom and Sabo. He ignored his twin's tracking stare as he gestured for the speedster to relinquish his hold. Boom did so without any hesitation, muttering something along the lines of 'I'd gladly hand him over if I don't have to talk to _those_ shits'. Espio's grip was tight even though Sabo wasn't going to get anywhere fast.

"What about me?" Eggman questioned.

"What about you?" Shadow replied smoothly. He gave the doctor a level look. "Victim or not, _you_ were the one who initially let him in."

Eggman flushed with red-hot anger. "But there was no way I could've known that – you just can't _leave_ me here!"

Shadow stood his ground. "Can, and will. Chaos Control."

There was a flash, and suddenly only four were left.

The human clenched his fists at his sides, grinding his teeth together. "That little-!" Eggman then marched over to Sabo and slapped the chameleon one good time on his charred cheek. Espio tightened his grasp as Sabo's head was wrenched to the side, a pained moan escaping the abused one's lips. Eggman thrusted a finger into the recovering ninja's face. "This is _all_ your fault, you dreaded reptile! If you would have just followed behind _me_ and not fabricate your own ridiculous plans, then I wouldn't be in this situation! Stranded!"

Sabo didn't respond, a permanent wince in his expression as he rode out the intense pain.

Eggman growled at him before leaning back and locking gazes with Espio. The human's frown was prominent, but the hostility in his tone all but disappeared. "If I wasn't who I am, I would thank you for setting me free from their control. But as I am, the number one enemy to those hedgehogs you call _friends_ , I'm going to turn my back on you and see if I can salvage _anything_ from that base that will get me out of these ruins."

With a huff, the doctor spun on his heel and began his trek over to the open hangar, but not before throwing Omega a dirty look. The robot responded accordingly. "I DISLIKE YOU AS WELL, EGGMAN." The man's glare only increased in intensity before he disregarded the bot altogether.

Espio watched him go, wondering how saving the doctor had affected this outcome. Well, it actually had not been retrieving Eggman that had a significant effect, being the first ones to imprint on Boar was the thing that tipped things in their favor…and apparently, he and Sabo had been sharing the same train of thought.

"If…" Sabo's voice was no stronger than before, almost being carried away by the breeze. Espio marginally narrowed his amber orb when his twin tilted his head back, meeting the detective's stare with his swollen gaze. "…B-Boar had been…on my side from the very start, you all would be dead."

Espio wasn't going to entertain that thought, no matter its truth value. "And? It didn't happen." Despite his horrid state, Sabo still managed to glare at him. He wasn't fazed at all. "Bringing it up won't change your future rotting in a jail cell."

His evil twin ceased eye contact, lowering his head and his volume. Espio could barely hear him. "If I ever get out…I'm coming for you first."

Before Espio could respond to that threat, Shadow had returned alone.

"WELCOME BACK, SHADOW. YOU DID NOT MISS ANYTHING BUT THE BEATEN CHAMELEON'S EMPTY PROMISES," Omega informed.

"I didn't need to hear any of his nonsense anyway." The hedgehog let silence reign for a moment, realizing that there was someone missing. He searched around before asking, "Where's the doctor?"

"He went down in the base to salvage something to help him leave this place." Espio jabbed his chin in the direction of the hangar. "I doubt he'll be able to leave under anything but his own power however."

Shadow quietly snorted as he approached them. "He needs the exercise anyway." All amusement left his face as he paused right in front of Sabo, arms crossed. They both eyed each other, radiating pure hatred. "I hope you never see the light of day again," Shadow uttered lowly.

Sabo said nothing; his jaw was locked.

The black anthro lost interest in him. "Ready?" he questioned the other two.

Omega's opticals flashed. "AFFIRMATIVE."

Espio glanced the way they had come, where the military plane was sitting atop the massive wall, alone. "What about the jet?"

The Ultimate Lifeform pondered that for a moment. "If G.U.N. cared enough, they'll track it down."

The detective hummed. "Fair enough."

Shadow didn't hesitate in uttering the particular words. The hedgehog blinked, and he was in Station Square once more. More specifically, right in the middle of the G.U.N base. There was a small uproar, and the quartet were at the business end of many firearms. The striped hedgie hadn't expected anything less from the armed military members.

Shadow held up a calm hand. "Stand down." The uniform soldiers were too awed by the two identical chameleons – though one was more damaged than the other – and Shadow's rather bloody self, but he really didn't feel like staring down the barrel of the numerous weapons. "Put the _damn_ guns down."

That did it. The surprised members lowered their firearms, glancing between the red splattered mammal and the doubles. They still looked confused as all hell.

Shadow didn't wait for any questions. "Is the Commander in?"

"Uh…" A cadet began after scraping his jaw off the floor. "He should be…"

"Good." Shadow peered back at his trusty robot ally. "Omega, stay here and let one of the technicians fix you up." Tails would've been a better choice, but his workshop didn't exist anymore. When the bulky mech trotted away, Shadow took Sabo off of Espio's hands. He gripped the injured one's wrist none-too-gently and walked ahead briskly, not noticing nor caring that Sabo was stumbling over his own unsteady feet. "Let's go Espio so we can get this over with."

Espio trailed after the duo, a bit surprised that his twin wasn't struggling more than he was. Granted, there was no chance of him escaping, but the chameleon hadn't seemed like the give-up type. He _had_ been horribly beaten – both figuratively and physically. Maybe he had just accepted his fate.

The detective stopped musing about his double. He was done with him. His thoughts drifted to a hyperactive bee. He was sure that Shadow had dumped everyone at the rabbits' home, so, "Did Charmy meet you out there?" The kid should have, unless he had been napping. However, given the circumstances, Charmy wouldn't have been able to reach that level of relaxation until they had returned from their mission.

His assumption had been right. "He did." Shadow nodded as they turned a corner. Espio's lips twitched downwards when the hedgehog glanced back at him with a, "He had been hounding Vector before I left, asking where you were and wanting the crocodile to say that what he heard about Rosy's injury was wrong."

"Of course," Espio muttered, guilt crashing into him yet again. He felt Shadow's eyes on him, but they were ignored and eventually they refocused forward. The chameleon only wished that he had done _something_ to prevent that travesty. He quietly sighed, and the rest of the way was traveled in silence. All he hoped was that the hospital staff could do something…

Arriving at the doors separating them from the Commander's office, Shadow didn't bother to knock. He kicked them open with ease, somewhat startling the human at his desk, seemingly filtering through paperwork.

Discolored eyes then narrowed when they recognized the hedgehog barging in. When Shadow stopped before his desk, the Commander slowly stood out of his chair, a prominent frown curving his lips – apparently not thrown off by the blood on the hedgie. "Shadow the hedgehog, _finally_ showing your face after that Metal Sonic incident, proving that you had been _abusing_ your time off to recover in the hospital. Explain yoursel-"

"That's not what I'm here for, Commander." Shadow cut him off, disregarding the heat he received. "I'll be back on duty tomorrow, but right now, I have a criminal who must be imprisoned." He tugged a silent yet inwardly frustrated Sabo in front of him. A crease formed in the human's brow as Shadow explained, "He is convicted of first-degree murder on three accounts, treason because of him working with Eggman, and kidnapping on multiple accounts as well."

"Given his condition and current relationship with you _and_ Sonic…" The Commander refocused his dubious look on the black hedgehog. "I can't say that I believe you, Shadow."

Shadow couldn't say that he hadn't expected this. "He's in this _condition_ because it had to be done to defeat him." That was a bit of a stretch. It didn't _have_ to be done. "And he isn't the Espio you're thinking about." The striped one peered at Espio, and the Commander's body went rigid, just noticing the second chameleon in the room. " _He's_ the detective, the member of the Chaotix."

The human glanced between them two, and Espio figured that it was his cue. "He's right, sir. You know of the appearance of Metal, yes?" The Commander narrowed his eyes further, but he nodded in confirmation. "Then you must've heard of the two Sonics present. There are…doubles of most of our allies here now."

The Mobians practically saw the gears turning in the man's head. He returned his hard stare onto Shadow. "Explain that."

The Ultimate Lifeform grunted, clenching his fingers around Sabo's wrist and causing him to hiss at the pain. "I'll gladly inform you _after_ this damn trash is locked away behind bars."

Espio observed as the man and hedgehog stared each other down, both refusing to budge. He would've let it go on, but he wasn't in the mood to stand here for an undetermined amount of time. Espio folded his arms. "Sir, do you want it spread around that you refused to detain a very dangerous criminal due to you wanting an irrelevant explanation?"

It took a while, but the Commander finally heeded his words. The man scowled at him before eying Sabo. "Fine, I'll take him-"

" _We'll_ take him in." Shadow corrected. "I want the satisfaction of ripping his freedom away."

The human walked around his desk. "For you to come with me, he must've wronged you personally, agent."

"That's putting it lightly." Shadow nearly growled before holding the reptile's wrist out. "Keep him restrained for a moment. I'll be right back." When the Commander did so, Shadow teleported Espio and himself away before the human could question his statement.

Espio had barely realized that he had been brought to Vanilla's place before Shadow was gone again.

Everyone was there, as expected. There was light conversation filling the air, but the most interesting thing was that Penumbra and Grey were getting hosed down by Rogue next to the side of the cozy house. The bat was dripping wet – having been cleaned off beforehand – and was having fun blasting the liquid in the white and striped hedgie's faces when he got the chance.

"Just keep the water over _there_ , and we won't have any problems." Blaze made sure her voice was heard over the gushing water.

Rogue focused on her, a mischievous glint in his eyes, but before he pulled a stunt that might cause him to receive third degree burns, he had noticed Espio standing in the back. The bat lifted up his free hand in a wave. "Hey man, you made it!" The rest of the Mobians turned to see who he was talking to – Grey twisting the hose faucet with his powers – as Rogue questioned, "Where's Shadow?"

Espio opened his mouth. "He's going with the Commander of G.U.N. to throw my twin behind bars."

Cheers rung out. Charmy sped over to him. "Yes! It's about time he gets put where he belongs! After all the bad things he's done!"

Boom, who was leaning against the front of the house, still preferred that rotten chameleon six feet under, but he could accept having Sabo in prison, out of their lives forever.

Standing beside him, Red released a long-winded sigh. "Finally…we don't have to worry about _him_ anymore…or anything really."

Sonic grinned at the echidna, relieved as well that this ordeal was over. It was all in the past. "Well…you got have of it right! We don't have to worry about Sabo, but you guys do have to figure out uh…what you're gonna do next. This world's big enough for all of us, but…" He met the gazes of the foreigners. "You basically have nothing now…"

Red shrugged, that fact not bothering him. "Didn't really have anything in the first place. I was a drifter. It's the same here as it was in our home world. The only thing different is that the Master Emerald isn't my possession anymore." Amethyst orbs shifted over to said jewel by Knuckles. Red smirked. "I'll leave that job to you."

"As it should be," Knuckles huffed.

Rouge shook her head with a grin. "Come on hon, you know that you get lonely up on that island by yourself."

"I am _not-_ "

"On the topic of being lonely…" Rogue tapped his chin, smirking the winged agent's way. "Do you have any roommates, Roo? If not, I could crash at your place until I find something more permanent…"

If Red would've rolled his eyes any harder, he would've pulled something.

Rouge's answer wasn't immediate. She was thinking, humming to herself as she gave the male bat a once-over. Knuckles wasn't as calm. "Don't tell me that you are _considering_ letting him stay with you!"

The jewel thief rose a mocking brow at him. "And if I was? Why should it matter to _you_ , sugar?" Her grin widened when Knuckles just sputtered and pointedly looked away. She then addressed Rogue. "While it's true that I don't have any roommates, my couch isn't very comfortable and my bed isn't even big enough to share."

Knuckles subtly relaxed at those words, and Rogue chuckled. He knew that she wasn't actually going to say yes. He just wanted to see the echidna's reaction. "That's too bad."

"Now that you tried and failed to flirt, how about _we_ become roommates?" Grey asked Rogue, shaking off any residual wetness. The psychic smiled hopefully at him, trying his hardest to stay positive like Cream suggested. "You, me, and Charmy? Heck, even Vector if he wants! It'll be fun!" He threw the crocodile in too because Grey knew that they were good friends even before this fiasco, and the bat couldn't say no to that, right?

 _Absolutely crazy is more like it,_ VC thought. He could imagine the late nights where the bee had had too much sugar and refusing go to bed, and even worse, he could see Grey giving him more just for a _laugh_ and… He was thrown out of his musings when Rogue smiled at him, apparently _not_ thinking about the issues he was. But maybe…it wouldn't be so bad?

"Why the heck not?" He uttered defeatedly, and Rogue, CB, and Grey cheered in unison. The croc pointed at the bee. "But he gets no candy past five! No…noon!" The hovering kid deflated, but then the psychic whispered something to him that brightened him up again. VC figured it was something about sneaking sugar and giving him a headache.

Vector nudged him, feeling sympathetic. "If he's anything like Charmy, sugar could stay in his system for _multiple_ days."

"Thanks for the tip," VC grumbled and his twin laughed.

"It's great that you're roommates now…" Tails pursed his lips. "…but you still don't have any money."

Grey froze before slumping. "Crap. You're right."

Sonic tapped his foot on the ground in thought before smirking. "I think I can help you with that! How 'bout I go lookin' for an apartment with you? There _has_ to be a complex that likes me enough to let you guys stay there for at least a few nights no charge!"

CB zipped over to him, eyes wide. "Really? You think you can do that?!"

He snickered. "Sure!" Sonic raised a hand and clapped it with the excited bee.

Red let out a single chuckle as he linked his hands behind his head. "I'll tell you one thing, be lucky that this whole situation wasn't reversed, that all of you ended up in _our_ world. The people in Station Square would've rather run from him than offer hospitality," he said, bobbing his head over at an indignant Boom.

Though it didn't matter how he felt about it – he honestly didn't care. Really. There was no way he was the _tiniest_ bit jealous – Boom couldn't say it was a lie. He growled. "Shut up, Dreads. I wouldn't have _asked_ them anything anyway. I would've just taken what I needed."

"Yeah, about that…" Sonic turned toward his double holding up a finger. "One, you can't act like you that here because you're wearin' my face and I don't want my free complimentary chili dogs taken away from me." Boom scowled at him, but didn't reply. Sonic held up another digit. "And two, where are you goin' after this, Boom?"

A particular gravesite popped into his mind, and his retort wasn't as scathing as he had liked it to be. "Don't worry about me." Boom sneered. "You're asking all these questions about where _we're_ going to go, what about _you?_ "

Sonic put a hand on his hip. "Believe it or not, this won't be the first time I've slept without a roof over my head. Sometimes I even prefer lookin' up at the twinkly stars." He grinned over to the kid fox next to him. "And well Tails, you haven't done it in a long time, but what do ya say to roughin' it tonight?"

Tails wasn't usually the outdoorsy type, but the few times he and his brother had slept outside, it had been fun. He was always up for pointing out the constellations. "I say yeah! The skies look pretty clear, so it shouldn't rain on us."

"Oh you don't have to do that…" Vanilla gestured to her home as she spoke. "We have plenty of room! And after all that you've done, you deserve a soft mattress at least."

"Our doors are open as well," Espio added with Charmy nodding enthusiastically.

Rogue felt terribly guilty. "Sorry bro about your house though."

Grey sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah…we made you homeless…"

Boom watched as Sonic waved off the apologies with a small grin and politely declined the offers, actually _wanting_ just to take it easy and have the breeze flow through his fur. Boom breathed harshly through his nose. When he was younger, still living in Central City, he would've _loved_ people offering him comfortable beds to sleep on, but instead…

The azure hedgie ousted those thoughts, searching the yard to find a distraction. His emerald irises found Penumbra grasping the discarded hose, staring down the hole and shaking it like water would magically spout out. That was a good distraction as any.

"What about Penumbra?" he questioned, interrupting…someone. He hadn't been paying attention.

Penumbra had perked up at his name, dropping the hose and strolling up to Boom's side. His head was tilted, curious. "What…about I – er…me?"

Instead of Boom answering his inquiry, Cream bounded over to the striped hedgehog with a wide smile. She took one of his hands, squeezed it, and regarded her mother. "Mama! Mr. Penumbra can stay with us! He's nice and fun and…please?"

Vanilla hesitated for a moment. "Sweetie, I don't know…" She had learned about Cream's and Penumbra's time together, and while she appreciated him keeping her child moderately safe and happy, she was iffy about him staying. She didn't know him that well, and… Vanilla blinked when Cream hit her with the puppy dog eyes, and after studying the bunny's face, Penumbra did it too. It was surprisingly effective with his large maroon eyes, his folded ears, and his open expression.

Her resolve was cracking, and it didn't help that Blaze cleared her throat. "If you're hesitant, I can stay as well and keep an eye on him. I won't be returning back to my home immediately, so I can monitor him until he grows on you." And Blaze knew that Nummy would. The version of Penumbra she had met could've been likeable – disregarding how touchy he was – if she and Silver hadn't been laser focused on a mission. "If that's okay with you?"

There went Vanilla's worries, fluttering away with the wind. The rabbit gently smiled. "That's perfectly fine, and honey," she focused on Penumbra, "you can stay."

Cream cheerfully bounced up and down. "Yay!" She then jumped and gave Nummy a hug, and the striped one happily returned the gesture. Cream laughed, and Penumbra joined in with her. "Thanks Mama!"

"Thank you!" Nummy chirped, echoing the bunny.

Silver blinked slowly at the sight. Yeah, _that_ was the Penumbra he was used to. The psychic then crept over to Espio, who had risen a brow at his approach. Silver awkwardly chuckled. "I hope that open door policy extends to me as well? I don't know Cream and Vanilla as much as Blaze does and I don't want to go back just ye-"

Espio looked vaguely amused. "You know that I wouldn't say no, Silver."

Yeah…he knew. It was still nice to ask though.

While they were talking, Amy was thinking about how strangely adorable Penumbra was. Like a puppy. Now she was inwardly wincing, because she just compared a Shadow – who was regularly comparable to a loaded gun – to a cute little animal and she didn't know how she felt about that.

She didn't dwell on it for long, since she had another concern. "We've been talking about places to stay…" Her voice had gained the attention of most of the others. "What about Rosy and TT? Where are they-"

The pinkette didn't get to finish, for ringing had caused her to pause. The sharp noise flooded out of the open front door of the cozy home. "That's probably them!" Amy exclaimed.

"I-I'll get it!" Grey suggested, having been closest to the door. Many emotions raged within him as he ran into the house, the ringing guiding him to where the phone was. He felt both happy and utterly terrified. If Rosy was fixed, he was going to celebrate like there was no tomorrow, but if she wasn't… No. He was going to think positive! Of course she was better, or at least going to get better!

The white hedgie eventually found the phone in the quaint kitchen. He nervously – no, _confidently_ – picked it up, greeting, "Hello?"

The first thing he could make out was crying, and all of Grey's positive emotions vanished. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes before the other had even said anything.

" _S-Silver…?"_ It was TT, and he barely managed to say Grey's name between his sobs.

The psychic had to keep himself under control, no matter how hard it was. "Tails? H-How…How did it go?" Horribly. He already knew the answer.

" _She's…"_ There was a loud and lengthy cry. _"They c-couldn't help h-her!"_

Grey wiped away his tears before they properly formed, taking a deep breath. "What do you m-mean?"

" _Th-They examined her and said th-that they've never seen something like her b-before!"_ TT was nearly hyperventilating. _"There are things m-missing in her ears, but they're h-healed and the doctors…said that they c-couldn't…"_

TT's words morphed into sobs just as Grey heard footsteps behind him. He peered over his shoulder at the suddenly packed room. The white mammal knew that his miserable expression was enough to communicate what was happening. His sorrow was contagious; a heavy silence blanketed the large group, the only exception being sniffing from Amy and Cream.

Grey returned his attention to the phone, trying and failing to steady his voice. "T-Tails…we can work through this… It'll…It'll be alright…" He had a vice grip on the device. "She's s-still Amy, still strong. She can make…the best out of this. Don't you believe in her?"

The sobs dwindled into whimpers and sniffles. _"…Y-Yes…"_

"It's just a l-little obstacle." Little? It was humongous. Rosy couldn't _hear_. That's… Grey pulled himself together; he couldn't lose it with an unstable TT on the other end. "She can b-beat it!"

The fox didn't respond for a second. Then he shakily asked something Grey didn't expect. _"Can…I t-talk to S-Sonic? The one that w-we…"_

TT choked on his words, but the psychic knew who he was requesting. But…Why? "Are you sure?" he whispered. This was the last thing he thought the kit would ever ask for.

" _Y-Yeah."_

"Alright…" Grey lowered the phone and faced the others. His golden orbs scanned the crowd – lingering on Sonic for a split second – before settling on Boom, who was toward the back. "He wants to talk to you."

Boom couldn't say that he wasn't surprised as he weaved through the compacted Mobians, reaching out and grabbing the device out of Grey's hand. He wanted to talk to _him_ , out of all people?

The blue speedster frowned at the phone before putting it up to his ear. "I'm…here."

There was a pregnant pause before, _"C-Can you…p-please…teach us s-sign language?"_ Boom's eyes flew wide as they dropped down to his unoccupied hand. When he didn't respond fast enough, TT started up again. _"I-I know that we might not b-be…your f-favorite people but, a p-person's better than a b-book and-"_

"I'll do it," Boom said softly.

" _What?"_

"I said I'll do it, kid." Boom repeated it stronger, hand forming a fist. He breathed out heavily. _Mephiles would've helped…_

"… _Th-Thank you…We c-can…start tomorrow…?"_

"Yeah." Neither of them said anything for a moment, so Boom figured that his turn was over. He glanced over at those watching and held out the phone.

Espio saw his chance and took it. Boom stepped back after handing over the device. Espio bypassed the greeting altogether. "I'm sorry."

" _E-Espio? What are you s-sorry about?"_

The chameleon heard the despair in TT's tone and it made his chest clench. "That I didn't do anything to stop Bat. I could've done _something_ , but I…"

" _It's not your f-fault Espio, please don't bl-blame yourself!_ "

It was almost impossible not to, and Espio needed to make it up to them. Though it wouldn't fix things, it was something. "We were…talking about where you and your friends were going to stay now that this whole…adventure is over. The Chaotix house is open to you if you'd like to stay." Espio looked over at Vector and Charmy, and they didn't seem to mind. Their home was just big enough for three extras.

" _Y-You're so nice Espio…thank you…"_

The ninja nodded even though TT couldn't see. "You're welcome."

There was suddenly a hand on his shoulder. Espio tilted his head only to make eye contact with Sonic. He smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Tell him that I'm coming to pick 'em up."

Espio nodded, and the speedster was gone. "Sonic's on his way to get you two."

There was a sniff. _"O-Okay. I'll…hang up now."_

And he left.

* * *

Every tortuous step he took increased his hate for everything, but more specifically, for Shadow and the ingratiating and uncomfortable collar around his neck.

A loud, high-pitched beep would pierce the air every second, never failing. It made Sabo want to stab his eardrums. It obviously had been given to him so he couldn't utilize his ability. Of course, it was _Shadow's_ idea. That damned _rodent._ Damn him…and everyone else…

The irritating dinging gathered unwanted attention. Sabo just glared hard at the ground as he was guided through the halls of the prison, the prisoners jeering and taunting him from their cells. Some 'recognized' him from that detective agency. Sabo didn't care enough to harshly correct them, too busy attempting to and utterly failing at blocking out the beeps.

The reptile then nearly tripped over his own feet when he was shoved from behind. "Put more pep in your step, chameleon. I don't want to be in here all damn day." Sabo threw a withering glare over his shoulder, but of _course_ , Shadow wasn't affected by it. The purple Mobian would have punched the hedgehog right in the face, but he was in a modified straight jacket, restricting any movement from his waist up.

Because he couldn't cause bodily harm, Sabo kept moving, increasing his pace only slightly. "I apologize if I'm _inconveniencing you._ " The only response he got was another push. He scowled but kept quiet, following behind one of the guards here. The Commander hadn't felt the need to follow them inside after Shadow explained the twin situation. Sabo didn't know nor cared of the human believed it.

They turned a corner, and instead of cells, the wall was lined with window-less doors. They passed five of them before the trio stopped. The guard opened up the heavy metal door, and Sabo was met with the sight of a dirty mattress tucked in a corner. A dull flickering light barely illuminated the small space showing that the walls were heavily padded.

Before he could react to the fact that Shadow had prevented him _again_ from getting what he wanted, a fist punched the back of his head, sending him sprawling. Sabo landed hard on the soft yet harsh floor, the burnt side of his face tinging in pain.

Sabo hissed as he struggled to sit up, his amber iris swirling with hatred as he focused on a smug Shadow. "Welcome to your own personal hell," the hedgehog said, "In other words, get used to solitary confinement."

The beeping was worse now, it echoing against the walls and digging into his mind. Sabo trembled in rage. "If I'm just staying in here, why in the hell do I have this _collar?"_

Shadow just smirked before nodded to the guard. The metallic door – which was padded on the inside as well, to his chagrin – was slammed, and the chameleon was alone. The beeping was even louder. Sabo growled to himself before he fought against the straight jacket, desperately wanting out.

He was soon panting with his remaining arm completely tired out in the middle of the floor. He had made no progress, and the beeping was incessant and _loud._ Sabo scooted backwards with his legs until his back pressed against a wall. He slammed his head back and clenched his fingers when no pain registered. He was truly trapped here with no escape. From this place, from the jacket, from this humiliating loss, from the _stupid collar._

Chaos, just make it _stop._

It didn't.

* * *

When Shadow teleported back to the home, the sun was hanging lower and the yard was nearly empty. The only ones around were Knuckles and Rouge, who had been conversing by the glowing Master Emerald before he had appeared.

Rouge raised a hand in greeting as he made his way over. "Hey hon. It's about time you came back."

Shadow resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "You know what I was doing Rouge. Where is everyone?"

The bat gestured over to the home. "Blaze and your dear double are in there with the rabbits." Shadow nodded. Penumbra would be fine with them. " _My_ dear double, Grey, CB, and VC went with Sonic and Tails to go apartment hunting."

Knuckles lips twitched downwards, picturing Rosy's tears when she and TT had rejoined with them. "TT, Rosy, Amy, and Silver went with the Chaotix. The hospital couldn't do anything for her." He explained when Shadow opened his mouth. The Ultimate Lifeform didn't like that, not at all, but he couldn't do anything about it. "Interesting enough though…Boom's going to teach her sign language."

At the slight surprise on Shadow's face, Rouge subtly grinned. "He sure is. Really turned a new leaf. The Boom you first met and even the Boom _I_ first met wouldn't have done that."

She was right. "Death affects people, Rouge," Shadow muttered, and the duo in front of him quieted for a while. The striped hedgie sighed. "Speaking of him…" He trailed off, waiting for one of them to finish the statement.

Rouge shrugged. "He ran off after Rosy and the kit came back. Just like Red, though he's probably doing something else _other_ than sleeping." Knuckles grunted at that, mumbling something about lazy echidnas. The bat nudged him. "I don't blame him this time, hon. Today has been stressful."

"Fine," Knuckles ceded, "I'll give him that." The guardian then patted the large jewel beside him. "Now that you're here, Shadow, can you take us back to Angel Island? I want to put the Master Emerald back where it belongs."

Shadow nodded. "I can."

Rouge fluttered away from the rock so she wouldn't get caught up in the transportation as well. A smirk adorned her muzzle. "Why the rush, sugar? Sabo isn't going to bother us anymore, and Eggman…" She cut herself off, her confused gaze on Shadow. "Where _is_ the doctor?"

"Still at Kingdom Valley. He'll take care of himself," he responded dispassionately.

Knuckles huffed. " _Still_. It needs to be home so Angel Island can become airborne again and so I can be at ease."

"I see what you're saying." Rouge waved him off. "No one wants stress wrinkles." Knuckles inwardly groaned. The agent then asked her striped partner, "Oh, are you coming in tomorrow, Shadow?"

Shadow weighed the question before answering, "Might as well."

Rouge's teal orbs sparkled. "Great! So you can tell the Commander that I'm taking tomorrow off." The bat flew away with a laugh. "A girl needs some relaxation!"

Shadow deadpanned as she left earshot. "She's impossible."

"Absolutely," Knuckles agreed.

Not a minute later, the pair and the gem vanished into thin air.

* * *

Shadow had a hunch to where Boom had gone, and his guess was proven correct when he had warped to a particular clearing. The azure speedster was sitting in the grass, knees folded up to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. His back was to Shadow, but a twitch of a blue ear told the striped one that his appearance hadn't gone unnoticed. Boom didn't acknowledge him though.

Blades of grass crunched under his skates as he silently walked over, ending up beside the other hedgehog. Shadow noticed that they were equidistant from where the Rabbit family and Mephiles were buried, the fresh dirt contrasting the surrounding green.

They didn't speak for a long while.

Scarlet eyes drifted away from the graves to Boom's face, which was staring blankly at the disturbed mounds of earth. Shadow returned his attention to the unseen bodies. "That was nice of you." He felt no need to go in more detail.

A breeze ruffled their quills before Boom responded with a heavy voice. "Mephiles would've done it."

Shadow folded his arms across his chest. "You aren't him though."

"Don't you think I know that?" Boom finally looked up at him, weakly glaring. Shadow met his gaze, clearly showing that he wasn't bothered in the slightest by the expression. The blue hedgie sighed before breaking eye contact, tucking his chin in the crook of his arms. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

He didn't oppose the change in subject. Shadow replied evenly, "The same thing you are." Mourning the ones who had shaped their future and had cruelly died for doing so.

They fell into silence.

Shadow stood still until he believed it was time to go. He took a step back, planning to skate and bypass using the Chaos emerald to get to his apartment. There was no rush, and the side-to-side movement was usually relaxing, perfect after this long day.

He walked away a few steps until a voice called out to him. "Tell me that bastard of a reptile is going through hell right now."

Shadow peered over his shoulder, seeing the other doing the same, and scoffed. "He's going through worse, I assure you."

When Boom smirked and nodded, Shadow took off. He was eager to take a long-awaited shower in his comfy apartment and not to worry about nefarious purple chameleons. He did have to do something about the eight emerald eventually, but right at this moment, he desired to rest.

* * *

The sun set over the graves, and Boom was still there. As stars shone high in the sky, he had simply laid down in the grass, sleep chasing his dark emotions away. He tossed and turned as the moon illuminated the night. At daybreak, he was snoring soundly, but by noon, he was gone.

The clearing remained empty until others visited, either in groups or by themselves. Friends of the fallen stopped by at various times during the day, Boom eventually making another appearance. He didn't stay this time however. When the evening sun set, shadows growing long, the site again was vacant.

Clouds soon blocked out the moon when it chased away the massive star, pitch-black darkness shrouding the area and remaining there for most of the night.

When dawn broke, the sun's rays shined down on Mephiles' empty grave.

* * *

 **Ooo…I wonder what that means? Yeah, cliff hangers are evil, but they hold a special place in my heart. My sadistic little heart.**

 **Anyway yeah, that's the end of Reality Breach! But no need to fear, because as you can see, there shall be another after this! The rollercoaster's not over yet! Keep all hands and feet inside your cart at all times, because it's about to get rough! Well…maybe not immediately because I still have to iron things out, but eventually, yes! And like last time, I'll put up a notification in this fic when I post so you guys – who are** _ **awesome**_ **for staying on this ride for so long – know when the new story is up.**

 **So until then, catch you all later!**

 **PS- Infinite is so badass. I seriously can't wait for Forces.**


	47. Chapter 47

**Hey guys! It's been a while since you've seen this updated, huh? Well, I have good news! The third part of the Alternate Reality series is called Breaching Normality, and it's been posted! Make sure to stop by!  
**


End file.
